RWBY: Among the Night Walkers
by CrazyCrashCybr
Summary: Ruby is falling asleep after a long day at Beacon, when she notices something... off. Footsteps in her dorm room. Is it an intruder? Is it someone who's gotten up in the middle of the night? Who is it? Watch as she and Team RWBY are sucked into an alternate path, heralded by a dark and mysterious man. A White Rose story, originally a One-Shot, now a full blown story.
1. Chapter 1

**Note from CCC:**

 **The one-shot you are about to read has the tag (L). This stands for Lemons, and if you are not into these kinds of depictions of the characters I have listed in the story's description, then you will not enjoy this.**

 **There is smut.**

 **There are OC's.**

 **The story will likely turn in directions you don't want it to turn, suggest themes that require a bit more than just glossing over the words.**

 **Just warning you. It's a simple case of "Don't Like? Don't read."**

 **Now for those of you that do enjoy these kinds of things.**

 **This was a White Rose one-shot that I created at the same time as I was writing The Jet Chronicles Part 3, but I never really found a place for it, so I modified it a bit and decided to release it here for your enjoyment. Apparently people enjoyed it so much that the next thing I know, following two great people, by the names of TheRedPoet and dmrahn, and a ton of corrections, I've made it into a fully blown story.**

 **So enjoy!**

* * *

Ruby laid back in her bed, still suspended over the prim and proper figure of Weiss as she slept. To her left, she knew that her sister slumbered under her own soft sheets, while Blake was curled up under her covers, comfortable as can be.

Ruby let out a soft yawn before she stretched, lying on her left side as she prepared to go to sleep. It had been a tough day for all of them, what with the lectures getting harder and harder to understand, Goodwitch growing more and more harsh in combat lessons and the White Fang appearing more and more often.

She didn't like that last part at all. The White Fang had nearly killed her team's friendship again and again, from Blake being one of them, Weiss hating them, the fight, then Blake's chase that forced Yang to stop her.

Then, they'd had that run-in and Penny… yeesh Ruby was glad she hadn't gotten on Penny's bad side. And even after all of that, she'd run into the White Fang again and had to be rescued (dang that hole she'd fallen into), and they could have easily… yeah, let's not even go there.

Basically, the White Fang had nearly messed them up. Many times.

Ruby shut her eyes, trying to push those thoughts out of her head, and leaned into her bed, trying to fall asleep, wanting Dreamland to come and take her to one of her favourite places on Remnant. Cookie Land.

What? What was wrong about a cookie filled dream?

And who was she justifying herself to?

Ruby just tried to stop thinking. It was keeping her up.

 _Paf paf. Paf paf._

Was somebody awake?

 _Paf paf. Paf paf. Paf paf._

It sounded like someone was walking across the carpet to the bathroom. Ruby scrunched her eyes, ready to shut out the light that would flow into the room from the bathroom lamp, that would blind her in the darkness of the night.

It never came.

 _Click._

That was the bathroom door. Not a light switch. Ruby opened her eyes, and stared upwards at the ceiling of her dorm room, waiting. The light never went on.

 _Ker-chunk._

The sound of the door closing. Ruby popped herself up on her elbow, and stared at the bathroom door. There was definitely someone in there. She looked up at Yang's bed, and found the brawler still soundly asleep, snoring gently, and the bed under her was still occupied.

It was Weiss.

Well, maybe she just needed to go to the bathroom.

But Ruby couldn't hear the sound of droplets.

Something in her eye?

No, she would have had the lights on.

Forgot to brush her teeth?

Nope, Weiss NEVER forgot.

So why WAS she up then, in the bathroom, in the dark? Ruby couldn't even think of any other reason, and her curiosity was starting to wake her up. She sighed to herself, resigning to the fact that either she'd stay up all night wondering or she'd find out herself.

She leapt lightly from her bed onto the carpet of the dorm, and crept quietly to the dark, frosted glass door, going on tiptoe to make doubly sure she wouldn't wake Yang up. Yang was never a morning person, and she knew that more than anyone. Ruby put her ear to the door, expecting to hear movement. There was no audible movement, but instead, Ruby could hear Weiss... whispering?

"Ruby? Ruby, where are you?"

To say Ruby was taken aback would be an understatement. She and Weiss were best buds, yes, but Ruby would never have thought that Weiss would be dreaming about her. She quietly slid open the door, and found Weiss standing in the middle of their fairly spacious bathroom.

She was dressed in her nightie, a white silk whose purity matched her skin, her slender legs and untarnished hair bare. It was perfectly suited to Weiss, and it left Ruby wondering, not for the first time, how much lien the Schnee family actually had. She almost seemed to glow in the moonlit bathroom, not even the pristine tiles that the cleaners at Beacon cleaned coming close.

Ruby's eyes were drawn to Weiss' eyes, and she realised with a jolt that they were gently shut, her expression almost pained, her mouth a straight line. It was like she was missing something, and was missing it.

Or… someone.

"Ruby? Why aren't you here? It's me, your friend." Weiss whispered slowly, almost as if she was trying to reassure the Ruby she could see in her… was it a dream? Regardless, to the one in reality, the revelation hit her like a Bullhead on a direct, crash course with her forehead.

Weiss was sleepwalking. As in actual, legit, sleepwalking.

What did you do here? Ruby didn't know at all. Well, there was only one real thing that she DID know right now. Weiss was calling for her, for whatever reason.

"I'm here, Weiss." Ruby whispered, approaching her. The heiress reacted almost instantly, gently grasping Ruby's hand and leading her, seemingly blindly, down onto the cold floor tiles. Ruby complied with her motions, scared that if she resisted, she would wake Weiss up, and she'd heard that it could be very dangerous to wake up someone that was sleepwalking. So dangerous when you knew it was Weiss.

"You came." Weiss breathed, almost relieved in her tone, pulling Ruby so that she sat in the heiress' lap, both an uncomfortable and weirdly nice feeling for the pyjama-clad girl. "I was scared, Ruby."

"It's okay." Ruby said, trying not to blush as she hugged Weiss, remembering that her mum used to do that when she was feeling scared. Weiss smiled softly in her sleep, and brought her arms up towards her chest, before brushing Ruby's lips with her own.

It was only for a second, but Ruby instinctively jerked away as what Weiss did registered in her mind.

Was that a kiss?!

"What's wrong?" Weiss asked softly, clearly still talking to the dream Ruby. "I love you, Ruby."

What?

If there was blood in Ruby's cheeks before, now there was a flood of it. Weiss LOVED her?! As in THAT kind of love? Was that even possible? How?

In the midst of Ruby's shock, Weiss' soft hand clasped the back of her head, and pulled Ruby gently back for another kiss, something that brought her mind back into the situation at hand. She gasped by accident, and Weiss somehow took advantage of this, forcing her tongue through Ruby's lips and intertwining their tongues in a gentle, if slightly more heated kiss. Ruby didn't resist this time. How could she? Anything could wake her up, and then where would Ruby be?

Nowhere good, that was for sure.

Didn't the other person have to say 'yes' first, before doing something like this? It was almost like a crime to be doing this. But Weiss was the one doing this, not her. She started it. So did that mean that she was saying yes by letting Weiss do this to her?

Ruby was so distracted by this moral question, she only barely registered Weiss gently pushing her down, and moving so that she was on top of Ruby, her bare legs intertwining with the younger girl's, her feet somehow finding Ruby's own, her toes, smooth and untarnished, curling around the younger girl's own. The only barrier between their bodies were the clothes they wore, and even then, it was more Ruby's than Weiss'.

Her hands were now on either side of Ruby's, effectively trapping her as Weiss kissed her again. Unable to escape, she gave in, and resolved to enjoy it as best she could while she was stuck here, locking lips with one of the richest girls on Remnant. She was too, wasn't she?

After another long kiss, Weiss hands started to roam around Ruby's upper body, caressing each of her arms, her shoulders, the sensual snaking of her fingers around Ruby's stomach causing the pert nipples to harden. Then, Weiss started playing with them through her shirt, causing a needle-like feeling as Weiss' short nails danced around the sensitive spot, and Ruby bit back a moan, fearful of awakening both Weiss and the other two slumbering girls.

"I love you, so much, Ruby." Weiss purred, as said girl laid back, practically displaying her surrender. "I want you to know."

Ruby then let out an involuntary squeak as Weiss' hand went under her pyjama top and cupped her breast, swiftly followed by the other one. Weiss slowly kneaded Ruby's moderate mounds, caressing and stroking, occasionally leaning down to lick or nip at Ruby's nipples through her pyjama shirt. Then, she released her, before letting her hand roam around Ruby's body. No part of Ruby was left untouched, with Weiss' hands now flowing around her body, tenderly crisscrossing, softly crawling across her arms and legs, dancing around her thighs. And Weiss looked like she was having fun.

And all the while Ruby felt helpless. What was she supposed to do? Here she was, in her dorm's bathroom, getting... pleasured... by her own TEAMMATE, who wasn't even awake! If Weiss had been awake, she would have definitely stopped by this point, if these feelings were even real! But if Weiss was dreaming it, then it had to be real, right? At least, to her?

Her thoughts were cut short by the feeling of a finger through her pyjama bottoms directly at her core. It simply hung there, the little movements sending thunderbolts of sensation through the younger girl, and Ruby shivered helplessly as Weiss pecked her on the cheek, before wiggling her finger a little, Ruby twitching uncontrollably all the while, holding her moans in.

"You're beautiful, you know?" Weiss cooed, as Ruby squirmed underneath her, the digit outside her walls now probing, pushing against her. She then moved her hand upwards in front of her closed eyes as if she could see them, and rubbed her slick fingers together, the gesture causing Ruby to blush even more uncontrollably than before. "You're so... aroused by this, aren't you?" If Weiss only knew.

Or did she?

Weiss' hands then moved to Ruby's pyjama top, and Ruby automatically raised her arms, letting Weiss slowly slide her top off, before lying on the pleasantly cool tiles of the bathroom floor. It wasn't uncomfortable, just... cool. She felt a tug on her undergarment, and looked down to see Weiss gently tugging on her pyjama trousers, an expectant look on her face.

Ruby reached down, and slid her bottoms off herself, leaving her completely bare as Weiss tossed the clothes aside, somehow finding them even with her eyes shut. The chill of the cold tiles was the last thing on her mind. She stared up at the ceiling as Weiss fumbled with something out of her sight, waiting for her return. For a while, Weiss didn't come over again, and Ruby started to grow worried that someone had discovered them, or Weiss had woken up. She sat up frantically, hoping to everything holy that that wasn't the case.

Her mouth fell open.

The door behind them was still shut, and Weiss' eyes were still resolutely shut. That wasn't what stunned her, though.

Weiss knelt down beside Ruby, completely naked, smiling softly, not even a trace of embarrassment on her face. And she was absolutely stunning in her beauty, just like Crescent Rose with her latest upgrades, but in a totally different sense. Just like the rest of her, the skin on Weiss' slim stomach was pristine, with no mark or blemish, like an alabaster statue. It was as if Ruby was staring at a ghost. Her admittedly small breasts nearly blended in with the rest of her body, the small nipple standing to attention on the pale maiden each the only dominant feature upon them. Her slit was also small, and she had a very firm, slim backside.

Ruby only had another moment to process what was before her eyes, before Weiss' lips met her own again. Ruby fell into the same trap, involuntarily gasping, which allowed their tongues to coil once again, but this time, Weiss was a lot more aggressive in her kiss, plunging her tongue into Ruby's mouth like a flag of conquest into new territory. The younger girl whimpered in fear and pleasure as she felt Weiss' fingers snake inside her flower in combination with the assault on her mouth. A slender index finger moved to probe inside while another finger gently rubbed Ruby's pleasure button.

For Ruby's part, she could only hold in her moans and surrender, closing her eyes just like Weiss. All of it felt so good, and somehow… so right. Was this what love felt like between girls? If it was, then she would be happy for this, if only for tonight. Another moment, and she was back down on the tiled floor, Weiss hovering over her once again.

She laid there, not even moving, just enjoying Weiss' ministrations. Her slender pianist's fingers felt so much better inside Ruby than her own. She could hear a 'schlick' sound each time Weiss moved her fingers, and felt herself blush at how aroused she was, how wet she was getting. She could feel Weiss moving now, their legs intertwining, and Ruby felt a pressure inbetween Ruby's legs as Weiss pressed her own petals against her left leg, grinding against the young girl's leg.

 _Schlick, schlick._

Her insides were clenching up again, and Ruby spasmed involuntarily as Weiss found her sensitive spot, a spot which Ruby knew would only lead to one thing. Yet she had no way to stop it, and the pleasure was building up again. Weiss was going to finish her, and after what happened, Weiss… knew it too? Did she?

She could feel the wetness now rubbing atop her leg, and another hand, albeit that this one was only the knuckles as opposed to the fingers probing Ruby's flower. Another 'schlick' could be heard, but this was only turning Ruby on even more. She could hear Weiss touching herself at the same rhythm as she was doing Ruby, alternating between fingering her femininity and grinding against Ruby's leg like a pole. The erotic thought that Weiss was humping her leg only sped Ruby's approaching orgasm up. The pressure was becoming unbearable. Ruby's release was imminent.

She could hear Weiss moaning openly as she continued to do her deeds, until, with a final groan of pleasure, Ruby felt a sudden splat of something wet on her leg as Weiss stopped grinding, now simply twitching, letting more of the sticky... something cover Ruby's leg. After a moment or two, the splatting seemed to stop, and Weiss fell on top of Ruby, both covering Ruby with the heiress' sweat and her scent, the heiress falling atop Ruby.

Wait. Did she just... on Ruby's own leg?

This thought sent Ruby over the edge, and she let out a final moan of her own, before she sprayed her juices all over Weiss' own femininity, some of it splashing Weiss' stomach and legs. It was all Ruby could do not to cry out in pleasure as she finished all over Weiss' lower half, before the flow of juices petered out after a solid second. She then fell against the floor, exhausted.

So sleepy.

She felt herself beginning to doze off, still wrapped up in Weiss' arms. Did this kind of thing really tire someone out that much? She barely felt Weiss get off her, before she felt the heiress gather her up in her arms. Only two thoughts really resonated in Ruby's post-orgasmic mind as she let sleep take her mind and body.

How was Weiss the one carrying her?

And what on Remnant would the others say in the morning?


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, at this point I've got at least six people reviewing for another chapter, with about twelve followers who clearly want more chapters.**

 **So, as promised, here's chapter two, with chapter three well on the way!**

 ***Update* Version 1.2 of this chapter, did a bit of grammar/spelling combing as I said in Chapter 8's A/N. Hopefully I got it all.**

* * *

Warm.

Ruby let out a long yawn as she stretched her pyjama-clad arms and legs under the soft duvet of her bed. Light gently fell upon her closed eyes, like the welcoming call of a brand new day. She relaxed in her bed, glad that it was finally the weekend, her lectures for this week over. It was a weird dream last night, but-

Wait. No.

That wasn't a dream.

Ruby sat bolt upright in her bed, her mind snapping from blissful sleepiness to full alert. She quickly looked down at Weiss' bed, and saw the heiress sleeping soundly in her own bed, her normally pristine white hair forming a tangled mess under her head and shoulders. She was smiling in her sleep, okay, a small smile, but it was definitely a smile. Ruby felt herself blush as the memory of what she'd done with her last night surged forth in her mind.

She'd been... what did you even call what had happened in the bathroom? It'd been Ruby and Weiss, kissing, and then Weiss trapped her, kept kissing, and then started going further and further, until she started... touching herself and Ruby. She...

Ruby reached down under her covers and felt her left leg, the one Ruby knew for a fact that Weiss had been... riding, yeah, let's go with that.

Parts of her leg felt dry, like that one time Ruby had spilled super glue all over her arm. Dad was not happy, that was for sure.

No! Focus, Ruby!

She ducked her head under the covers, and rolled up her... wait a second, hadn't she been naked when Weiss had... finished her?

Ruby paused, thinking back.

Weiss had finished, they both had, then Ruby had started falling asleep, and Weiss had picked her up and was carrying her... howe on Remnant she had managed that Ruby would never know, but then it was all a blank. She'd blacked out, gone straight to sleep.

Did Weiss put her pyjamas on her? While she was sleepwalking? While Ruby was asleep?

No.

There was no way.

But there was no other way to explain it.

Ruby rolled up her pyjama trouser leg. There was nothing on the back of her pale skinned leg. Ruby ran her other hand up the front, finding that dry feeling again, running from her foot to the bottom of her knee. She twisted her leg around and craned her neck to see the front of her limb. There, on the front, was a thin, clear spray of stuff on Ruby's left shin that reminded her vividly of the super glue incident.

This was Weiss'...

More colour flared in Ruby's cheeks as she picked at a piece of Weiss' mark. It came off with a bit of effort, but it came off in a flake, leaving white speckles everywhere. She flicked the pieces off the side of the bed as she stared at the size of the 'patch', which ran from close to her knee to the top of her foot. Weiss had... so much...

Ruby threw off those thoughts as she slipped her legs out from under her covers, before hopping off her bed, grabbing a set of her clothes from her chest of drawers next to Weiss' bed and moving towards the bathroom. Looking up at their sunlit bunks, Ruby was relieved to see that the other two members of her team were both still asleep, though Blake batted the air every once in a while in her sleep with a hand.

Maybe in her dream she was chasing something?

She shook her head as she slipped into the bathroom, and slid the door shut. Her eyes fell upon the spot where Weiss had pushed her to the floor, and her her draining cheeks flared once again with colour. It was still really hard to think that they'd done... it... here. Her and Weiss could have woken up Yang or Blake, and come to think of it, how had Blake not been woken up? Didn't she have, like, super sensitive hearing?

Her nose picked up a slightly feminine scent on the air as she put her normal clothes on the sink, one that she knew very well.

Ruby's own.

She slid aside the shower curtain as more thoughts about last night assaulted her mind.

Thoughts that were... what was it?

Indecent?

Irresponsible?

Something like that?

It didn't matter.

As the cold shock of the water came on, Ruby realised with a jolt that she was still fully clothed in her pyjamas, and that said clothes were now being soaked in the warm water of the shower. She swiftly stripped off the now soggy pyjamas and tossed them out of the shower onto the floor of the bathroom, annoyed at herself. C'mon, Ruby, who goes into the shower with clothes ON?

As Ruby reached for the soap, she was still thinking about Weiss. Would she remember what happened? Would she be angry with her if she did? But then what was she supposed to do? Wake up someone that was sleepwalking, then it would be so much worse if Weiss had been awake as she was doing... that. It would have been too much of a shock. Yup, too much of a shock.

But it... it did feel good.

Good enough to make Ruby wonder; did Weiss do this a lot? It had been the first time Ruby found her, but maybe she did it more than Ruby knew. And was Weiss dreaming about her a lot? Did she... love her? As more than just a friend? Maybe she-

OW!

Ruby hissed with pain as some of the shampoo, that she'd been rubbing into her hair as she'd been thinking, dripped slowly and softly into her eye. Instantly, her eye burned with fiery agony. She held her hands up near the shower head, washing the suds off them as she snapped her eyes shut, the searing pain spreading all over her right eye. She then rubbed her eyes vigorously, desperate to get the pain to stop. After a while, Ruby reached out for a nearby towel, grabbing it and pressing it to her watery eyes.

The pain was slowly receding.

Thank god.

Resuming the task of washing her hair, Ruby let her mind wander again.

It moved, like a lost puppy, straight back to Weiss again.

Did she love Ruby?

Thinking about it, Ruby couldn't find any reason why it wouldn't be true. She was friends with Weiss now, and yes, she could still be a bit... stuck up sometimes, that was just Weiss for you. What really set her mind on the idea was the fact that Weiss was dreaming about her. Dreams never lie, or at least, that's what mum had always said. If you had a nightmare, it was always about what you were secretly worried about.

But this wasn't a nightmare.

It was Weiss, walking around in her sleep, somehow talking to Ruby, kissing her, touching her, and then...

Was it love?

Ruby turned off the shower, straining the last of the soap suds out of her hair. Thinking about it wasn't going to help.

She grabbed a towel and quickly dried off, rubbing extra hard on her left leg to get Weiss'... mark off of her leg. That was what it was, right? Ruby then started putting on her black sports bra and panties, hearing someone shuffling around close by. Figuring it to still be Blake (she was still going at that chasing dream, maybe), she reached for her combat skirt and put it on, before reaching for her top and sidling into it.

Now fully clothed, Ruby exited the bathroom.

As she padded closer to her own bed, her eyes fell on Weiss' sleeping face once again. She paused. Weiss looked so peaceful there, still fast asleep. Her face still showed that same small smile.

Even after they'd done what they did.

Had Weiss really enjoyed it?

She'd... finished, but that had been when she was asleep.

Did she really feel any of it?

"It's not nice to stare, dolt."

Ruby snapped back to attention, her eyes refocusing on a now awake Weiss, whose light blue eyes were locked on Ruby. A flush of embarrassment flared in her cheeks as she realised that she'd been caught. But Weiss was surprisingly calm for someone that had just woken up while being stared at. An awkward silence billowed between the two of them.

"Ruby?" Weiss said quietly, her smile faltering. "Is there something you wanted to say?" Ruby's mind immediately went into overdrive.

"Oh. Yes! Good morning! How'd you sleep? Good dreams, bad dreams?" Ruby babbled, unable to keep control of her mouth. Weiss' smirk of amusement didn't calm Ruby down. In fact, it only made her more worried.

"I'm fine, thanks." Weiss replied, but then a faint blush appeared on her brow. "Just don't ask me about the dream. It... was weird, Ruby."

Aha! So she DID have that dream, the one that caused that... you know what.

"Actually... we need to talk about that dream." Ruby responded, sitting down beside the heiress' legs on the middle of her bed, causing creases along the stone-like surface. It was a testament to their friendship that Weiss didn't immediately berate her, though Ruby noticed the raised eyebrows that signified Weiss wanted to, alongside a slightly deeper blush. "How much do you remember?" Ruby asked.

"I... I don't want to talk about it." Weiss replied quietly.

"Weiss, it's important." Ruby asserted softly.

"Why?" Weiss asked back, her glare now showing signs of danger.

This was never going to be easy.

"You were sleepwalking last night." Ruby answered. "I saw you."

The colour seemed to drain from Weiss' face as she heard Ruby's reply. Then, it returned with full force, painting the upper levels of her face a light crimson.

"I was sleepwalking? With that dream?" she asked, more to herself than Ruby. Then, she reached over and grabbed Ruby's shoulders with surprising force, her expression suddenly very stern, her eyes hard. "Ruby, tell me what happened!" she hissed.

"You first!" Ruby retorted quietly, twisting out of the heiress' grasp, and backing up, going dangerously close to the foot of Weiss' bed. She lunged again, but Ruby was out of her reach this time, and she fell back with a defeated expression on her face.

"Fine." she spat. "But not here."

She then threw the duvet cover off herself and marched to the showers, picking up her set of clothes on the way. Ruby shifted to the side just a little bit in order to reach for something on top of the chest of drawers.

There was a crash as Ruby hit the floor of her dorm, having just fallen off the bed.

* * *

"First of all, noting we say leaves this room, right?" Weiss asked.

"Right." Ruby asserted.

They were sat at opposite ends of a desk within a sound-proofed private study room meant for teams to work together with only their own members for company, and no outside distractions. They were mostly empty during the weekends, so Weiss had taken the opportunity to give them a chance to talk in private. Both girls sat with blushes on their faces, and Ruby had crossed her legs under the desk.

She was watching Weiss' face as she looked away, clearly thinking about what to say.

She still looked beautiful, maybe even more than last night.

There was one problem though.

Weiss was never nervous.

As in never, ever nervous.

"Well," Weiss began, "I just have one thing to ask you, Ruby. You were in the dream I had. Please don't judge me in any way. Can you do that for me?"

This was weird. Weiss was quiet, not bossy like she normally was. Ruby had never, ever in her life, seen Weiss like this. But honestly, she knew that she was not one to judge anyone after she'd basically let Weiss do what she'd done in her sleep. Yeah.

"No judging." Ruby said, raising her hands in the universal 'hands up' position. "But that goes for you too, alright?"

"Alright." Weiss repeated, her voice sounding as if she'd been trying to pronounce a foreign word. "Well, then this is what I dreamed last night."

* * *

Weiss stood in a cold, dark void. Everything in this vast, open expanse of nothingness was mixes of dark purple and pure blackness. There was nothing here. Nothing.

Except the ground she stood upon, which was the same, shifting colours that the space was.

And herself.

"W-Weiss..."

And that-

Wait, what?

"Ruby?" Weiss called out into the darkness. "Ruby, where are you?"

There was no response. Just the endless shifting shadows that both drew away from her and closed in on her. She was alone. She would be alone, unless she found Ruby.

"I'm s-s-scared, Weiss!" Ruby cried out, her voice echoing around Weiss.

She wheeled around, trying to find Ruby, but to no avail.

It was still just her.

Alone.

"Ruby? Why aren't you here?" Weiss called back, still looking, desperate to find Ruby. She was out there, somewhere. Weiss' face fell. "It's me, your friend!"

At last, she spotted a figure among the twisting nether of the abyss Weiss' dream had taken the form of. It was approaching her, and a second look showed a pyjama-clad Ruby stepping through the shadows, getting closer and closer, until she was right in front of Weiss, having just moved from miles away in the blink of an eye.

"I'm here, Weiss." the figure whispered as she came even closer. Weiss' heart was racing now. Once Ruby reached her, Weiss took her hand in her own, and Ruby pulled her down onto the floor of the black nexus that was the dream world. Despite the bleak surroundings, it almost felt... lighter, now that Ruby was with her. Ruby had a wide smile on her face as she watched Weiss.

"You came." Weiss said softly. Ruby nodded, slowly padding even closer, like a curious puppy looking at a new toy.

"I came." Ruby repeated.

"I was scared, Ruby." Weiss admitted, something she wouldn't normally do, but here, in this dank dream, she could let her real feelings out.

"It's okay." Ruby reassured, before she wrapped her arms around Weiss, pulling her close. "I love you, Weiss." she whispered, as Weiss drew her arms up to her chest, in-between them. "I've always loved you."

Finally. The words Weiss wanted to hear from the real one. In response, Weiss leaned up and brushed her lips against Ruby's own. She twitched defensively, something that did not go unnoticed, but did not otherwise react.

* * *

"And then?" Ruby asked, before noticing that she was leaning over the desk, watching Weiss intensely, her attention on the heiress' every word. She was blushing profusely now, backing away ever so slightly.

"I... I... I can't, Ruby." Weiss replied, crossing her arms across her chest and bowing her head. "It's too much. Tell me your side!" she suddenly demanded. "What happened?"

Ruby sighed, causing Weiss' gaze to harden.

And it was just getting to the point when they, no, when Weiss kissed her.

Now, it was her turn to blush.

"Weiss." She took a deep breath. "What you dreamt... kinda... happened. While you were sleepwalking."


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow. Just wow. Just before I uploaded this chapter, I went ahead and checked the followers, favorites and reviews for this story. I've never seen bigger numbers for any of my works in such a short space of time before, for only two chapters (well, three now). I was shocked and happy at the same time that so many people enjoy this, and man, I have even better news.**

 **Turns out that I haven't been able to compress all that I wanted to happen in this one-shot-turned-triple-shot in only three chapters, so you know what that means. Yup, another chapter is on the way after this one! But I actually have a question for all of you that have stayed with me up until this point.**

 **Do you guys want me to continue this story after this initial arc is done? I have a fair idea of what I want to do with it if you want me to continue with it, or would you guys be happier if I moved on after finishing the fourth and final (so far) chapter in this story. Please don't hesitate to review or PM me to slip me a response.**

 **Oookaayy, now I'm going to close of this long-as A/N. Enjoy!**

 ***Update* Version 1.2 of this chapter, did a bit of grammar/spelling combing as I said in Chapter 8's A/N. Hopefully I got it all.**

* * *

"... and that was when I kinda... fell asleep." Ruby finished, her blush reminiscent of her name. Weiss sat opposite her, her eyes wide, the shock on her face clear as crystal, before she buried her face in her hands, the embarrassment clearly too much to bear. She'd just told Weiss everything that happened last night, leaving out some of the... indecent? Yeah, indecent things out, but basically Weiss knew most of everything now, except for a couple of things. It was better this way. Now, Weiss knew it all, but she wasn't looking up.

"I... I..." Weiss gasped, her voice muffled by the arms around her head. "I... did that? Tell me." She looked up, staring Ruby right in the eyes, a teardrop noticeable in the corner of her left eye. "Did I do all of that?"

"Yes." Ruby replied firmly, staring straight back. Yang had always said that if someone wanted the truth, you looked them right in the eye. And Weiss looked straight back, her eyes flicking around ever so slightly, as if checking individual strands of colour in Ruby's eyes. Then, the moment passed, and she broke her gaze, turning to look out of the window of the study room.

There was a pressing silence. One where Ruby fought the urge to fidget. It looked like Weiss was trying to make up her mind. Her expression was one of almost deep contemplation.

Too long.

"Weiss, if you've got something to say to me, just say it." Ruby reassured, putting both her hands flat on the table. Then, she remembered what they had said before starting this whole thing. "You remember what we said? No judging." At this, Weiss finally turned her gaze back to Ruby. Her face showed vulnerability all over, but there was something else. Hope, maybe? Weiss took a deep breath.

"Okay, Ruby." Weiss responded. She took another deep breath, Ruby waiting, quite patiently. Yeah, that's right, she could be patient. "I'm going to tell you everything." Ruby did nothing except nod.

"Well, I've been your partner since the day after I met you." Weiss began, her voice slow, uncharacteristically soft, the colour leaving her face. "When you became our leader as well, I hated that. I didn't know what to make of you, and at that time I thought myself far superior to you." Her words cut deep, and Ruby held back the retort she knew would have come out if it had been anyone else talking.

"But when Port told me to take myself down a peg, and give you a chance, I did. I tried to be a better friend." Weiss continued, a small smile crossing her face briefly, and Ruby let herself smile in turn. "That was when it all began. We would work together, practice together, and over time, I stopped thinking about how good I was and how I was the best, and started working to make our team the best that we could."

"The more I trained, the more I worked, the more I saw you, I started seeing you for how you really are." Weiss explained. "You're much more than I first thought, Ruby. Your inner strength, your maturity, your determination, all of it was so much more. I realized it in the first match of the Grand Vytal tournament, and then, when we returned to our dorm, that was when I found that I couldn't stop thinking about you." Ruby was taken aback at this. It had been that soon?

"When that happened, I realized that it was love. There was no question." Weiss said, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "I would think about you all day and then at night, my dreams were filled with you." Her gaze then intensified, something that Ruby spotted immediately, as her blush returned in full force. "Ruby, I have no other way to say this, so I'll just say it. I love you, and I've loved you for a long time."

There it was. Ruby had known since Weiss practically spelled it out while she was sleepwalking. But then-

"I... I understand if my feelings aren't returned." Weiss spoke, breaking Ruby out of her reverie. She refocused on the heiress, only to see more tears threatening to break loose. "You don't have to love me back. It's... well, it's out of the blue. Just please still be my friend."

Weiss looked incredibly vulnerable now.

She was shivering a little, hugging herself as she watched Ruby, her alabaster hair flowing behind her and catching the gentle morning sunlight. Ruby knew that this was the moment where she would have to step up. Was what Weiss did completely okay? No, it still probably wasn't. But what she said now would either make, or break, her heart.

Was that the right way of saying it? Ah, whatever.

She pushed her chair back and stood up, trying to give her best smile to Weiss while in this situation, though it came off as more sheepish than anything else. Her eyes rose with Ruby, an almost hopeful look in her eyes.

She started to walk around the table, in the direction of the door.

"Don't go. Please." Weiss quietly pleaded. It was dead silent in the study room.

Oh, Weiss.

Ruby passed straight by the door, moving towards the heiress. Her hope turned to shock as Ruby then pulled her chair out with Weiss still sitting on it, then Ruby sat awkwardly on her lap, trying her best not to fall off. Weiss eyes showed an almost disbelieving look, her mouth a thin line, but there was still that hope behind it. Ruby bent down so that they were eye to eye, and brushed her lips against Weiss', only briefly. The touch sent electrifying feelings through her, but there was one part of it that was important.

It was familiar.

And it felt right.

As Ruby pulled back, Weiss mouth had drooped open a little in a cute expression of shock or surprise or... no, it was surprise.

Weiss was completely silent, transfixed on Ruby's every move.

She knew what she had to do.

Somehow, she knew.

"Do you remember that?" Ruby asked the heiress, who touched her lips with a slender index finger, before looking back at Ruby. "I do. That was our first kiss, last night. Do you wanna know why that thing happened last night?" At Weiss' confused expression, she continued. "I didn't stop you."

"Ruby, I-" Weiss tried to argue, but Ruby cut her off.

"Nope." she interrupted, popping her p, before raising her finger. "I could have stopped you. One scream. That was all I needed. If you didn't wake up, Yang would. But I didn't." She paused, thinking about the best way to say this, but, drawing a blank, she resolved to say it as best she could. It was her face that was crimson now. "I didn't because you're beautiful. I didn't because I didn't want to hurt you. But I did it, for, well, one reason more than the rest." She leaned up close to Weiss ear, and whispered.

"I love you too, Weiss."

As Ruby drew back for the second time, she could see Weiss close her eyes, that small smile was back. She could feel the tension coming out of Weiss' body, the legs she was sat upon relaxing. Ruby put her arms around Weiss' shoulders, and she blindly copied her, until they were in a tender embrace. Ruby could feel Weiss' heart beating through her chest as her own heart moved to match it, until both slowly started to calm down.

"I... I'm actually speechless, Ruby." Weiss replied softly, as they continued to hug each other. "I thought you would hate me for what I did. When... when-"

She didn't say anything else as Ruby tightened her hug a little.

Neither did Ruby.

They just held each other close.

* * *

Ruby stepped through the door of their dorm room, holding Weiss' hand. Had the way she'd done things been the right thing to do?

Yes, yes it was.

She turned and saw the heiress looking at her, her smile seemingly set in stone now.

It was such a beautiful sight, looking into those blue eyes. As Ruby released her hand, Weiss gave her a small peck on the cheek, before going to her chest of drawers. Ruby watched as she crouched, going into the bottom drawer, withdrawing a pen from a back pocket, before putting it neatly inside, alongside three others. She then closed it, before looking up at Ruby and rolling her eyes at Ruby's stare.

"Don't know why I took it." Weiss explained, before walking across the room, brushing past Ruby on the way to the bathroom.

Ruby fixed her back with her classic squint eyes.

Yeah, that was definitely deliberate.

"Cheeky." Ruby muttered under her breath, as she moved towards her own chest of drawers.

"What was that?" Weiss called from the bathroom. Crud, did she hear her?!

"Nothing!" Ruby called back, just as the door opened behind her.

"Hey, Ruby!" Yang greeted from out of sight, as Ruby pushed the drawer back, not even sure why she opened hers in the first place.

"Hay Yang!" Ruby replied cheerfully back.

"Got a bit of a question for you." Yang said, leaning against the wall as Ruby turned to face her. She had a... was that guilt? Why would Yang of all people be guilty about something? "What's the best way to say sorry to Blake after she was chased 'round the block by Zwei?"

Wait. Blake... being chased by Zwei?

"Why'd he chase her?" Weiss asked, having just exited the bathroom. "He's normally such a sweetheart."

"Cats and dogs." Yang replied, shortly. Weiss folded her arms and rolled her eyes, but she almost seemed to relax a little when she caught Ruby's eye. "Plus I kinda, might have egged him on a bit."

"Try taking her somewhere. Say that you're sorry." Weiss said, counting upwards with her fingers. Ruby fought back a giggle. "Then talk it out. Maybe somewhere known for their seafood?" A spark of realization flashed in Yang's eyes.

"I know a place. Cheers, Ice Queen!" Yang responded jovially, before dashing off through the door she came in. Zwei zipped through the door before it shut, and leapt on Weiss' bed, where he let out a happy bark.

"She's not-" Ruby started to call out after Yang, but stopped herself. Weiss stopped halfway through moving towards Zwei.

"Defending me already?" Weiss asked, with a smirk reminiscent of that time with the Nevermore. It practically radiated confidence.

There was a pause.

"No, Weiss." Ruby replied with a sigh. "I just don't like it when people call you that. It makes you sound like a stuck up princess or something." At this, Weiss actually laughed, a quiet one, for sure, but it was a beautiful rarity that caused the hairs on the back of Ruby's neck to stand up straight. "It's not funny!" She said, in an attempt to cover her embarrassment, but she couldn't keep her own smile in now. Weiss stifled her chuckles and stepped smartly over to Ruby, where she gave her another peck on the cheek.

The place where her lips left burned with heat.

"That's really sweet, Ruby." Weiss whispered, that small smile that Ruby had started to love having returned. "But I can't be that cold when I'm with you. I don't think I can be the Ice Queen with a Ruby at my heart."

Wow.

Just... wow.

That was actually really romantic.

Ruby noticed that Weiss had cupped her cheeks in her hands, and gave the heiress a questioning look. In reply, Weiss tilted her head slightly, and started to lean forwards. She leaned forwards to match. Ruby was going to do this. For the first time, while she was awake, Weiss was going to kiss her. She could feel Weiss' warmth as they drew closer, their lips practically brushing-

ARF!

Ruby drew back in fright, and promptly fell over onto her backside with a painful thump.

Weiss, surprised by Ruby's reaction, stepped back and drew Myrtenaster, pointing it at different parts of the room, looking for an enemy.

Then, both of their gazes fell upon Zwei. He was hiding his face with his two front paws, his ears flat, though his tail was wagging still.

"Dang it, Zwei." Ruby muttered under her breath. She then reached up and took the hand that Weiss offered, getting pulled swiftly to her feet.

"Let's take care of this little one, shall we?" Weiss whispered, sheathing her rapier, as they turned towards the now happy little dog, who let out a bark and flew at them, tail wagging like crazy.

* * *

Ruby sat down on Weiss' bed, looking down at Zwei, curled up in bed, the dog's appetite for play and affection temporarily satisfied. Weiss was next to her.

She was so tired, it was unbelievable. It wasn't often she felt this fatigued.

"For the record," Weiss spoke, and Ruby turned her head to see two beautiful blue eyes on her own. "I've never seen a faster game of fetch in my life." She had that smile Ruby loved, and Ruby felt her racing heart calm down at the sight.

It was official.

Weiss' smile could cure any worry she had.

Seriously.

The heiress left the bed and started walking towards the bathroom, before turning back and looking at Ruby. Her eyes sparkled in the afternoon sun, the flowing locks of snow-white hair casting a radiant glow about her.

"Well, I don't know about you," Weiss continued, "but I'm taking a shower. You'll probably need one too." She had a smile that was closer to a smirk now. Was it something Ruby was doing? She flashed a quick look towards the bathroom before re-affixing her gaze on her.

What was she getting at?

"I'll hop in after you." Ruby replied, blushing a little as Weiss continued to have that same half-smirk. Weiss sighed, her smile faltering a bit, returning to the sweet one Ruby loved to see.

"Dolt, that was a hint that I wanted you to come in with me." Weiss said, her voice now a little softer.

Oh.

That faint blush Weiss had threatened to appear.

For Ruby, hers had no warning.

It came up full force as she considered this.

Going into the shower with Weiss?

But wouldn't that mean they would be naked?

Weiss would be awake this time, but-

"Um, sure." Ruby answered, still abashed. Weiss rolled her eyes, and moved back to Ruby, where she held out a smooth, small hand, unmarked and unblemished. Just like the rest of her.

Ruby reached up and took it with one of her own.


	4. Chapter 4

**Welp, I never expected that I'd have to give up Youtube over this. Stranger things have happened though.**

 **For those of you that don't know, I'm actually a Youtuber (not a great one) and I recently posted saying that I'd need a break, because I had a ton of other stuff to do, including writing all this. My channel is the same as my name here, but you don't have to check me out if you don't want to. That being said, though...** **I just have to say one thing about this whole story.**

 **Holy crap.**

 **The views for this story just, literally, exploded, and I'm not kidding there. We had around 1.2k on the release of the third chapter, now I'm watching numbers of 2.5k and higher!** **Yeah, holy crap.** **Plus, we had seven people either messaging me or reviewing for this story's continuation, coupled with the fact that my favorites and follows shot up as well, so I guess I'm going to do it. This wasn't something I was expecting for my first One-Shot. Glad to hear you're enjoying this! I can't promise consistently timed uploads on this one, but the chapter lengths will be roughly the same for you guys (2k - 3k is my target)!**

 **And without further ado... Chapter 4 of this story, which is no longer an 'insert here' Shot!**

 ***Update* Version 1.2 of this chapter, did a bit of grammar/spelling combing as I said in Chapter 8's A/N. Hopefully I got it all.**

* * *

"What happened here?"

Ruby felt her entire frame shiver as a soft hand ran up her backside, passing over a tender spot on her left cheek. The warm water cascading around it did nothing to ease Ruby's nerves, nor the calming splash at it hit the tiles underneath her body, not even the simple fact of being in the all too familiar shower. The agonizing arousal that that hand was causing caused Ruby's legs to weaken, threatening to give out underneath her as slender digits gave her a little squeeze.

Said hand belonged to Weiss Schnee, heiress to Schnee Dust.

And Ruby's first love.

"I... I landed on it. The f-first time," Ruby tumbled over her words, as Weiss' hand now moved along her back, "I fell of... oh... off your bed this morning, then... ah!" She stopped as the same hands wrapped around her, and Ruby felt Weiss press her naked body around her own. Her pert nipples pressed against Ruby's back hard as she leaned against the wall of the shower for support. Her cheeks were burning.

"The other time was when we were scared by Zwei, wasn't it?" Weiss whispered in her ear. "That looks sore."

It was.

Ruby knew there was a bruise there, at least.

One impact with the ground wouldn't have done it, but two in the same spot?

Oww.

"What are you embarrassed about?" Weiss asked, having not moved from her previous position. "You've seen me naked before."

"That was w-when you were a-asleep." Ruby stuttered. "I-it's hard w-when you're l-looking at me too." Her mouth was a mess of wobbles and words, impossible to control. Weiss tittered a little, hugging Ruby a little tighter, planting a kiss on the nape of her neck.

"Ruby, even though you've been through that, you're still nervous?" Weiss cooed. "You really are adorable."

"S-stop it." Ruby protested, her cheeks flaring with even more colour.

This was so stupid. She'd seen Weiss before, so why was she so nervous? It was just... now that Weiss was awake, and could see Ruby naked as well, she couldn't even look at her. It was so dumb! But Ruby was feeling it anyway. "I... I don't even know what to do." she admitted.

"Why don't you let me lead you again?" Weiss asked. "Now that I'm awake, I can go slower than before. What do you think?"

That could be nice. If Weiss was the one doing it, then Ruby would only have to play along with her. It was harder now that she was awake, but Ruby knew that she'd have to work through this to be better for Weiss. She could guide her. And Ruby was sure she could trust Weiss to stop if she didn't like something. She nodded in response. Weiss didn't say anything back for a moment, then she let Ruby go and reached up for the shower head.

"Lie down on the floor. I'm going to wash you." Weiss requested.

She was going to wash her?

What was that supposed to mean?

Ruby complied nervously. The shower was roughly the size of a king-single bed, with tiled walls going all around it and the floor. They were clean, again thanks to the cleaners at Beacon taking their job seriously. Ruby laid down on the left side, spreading out on the soaking tiles, looking up at Weiss' face. She had pointed the shower head towards the drain at the other side of the shower to avoid spraying Ruby in the face. She was still smiling at least, as she sat down beside Ruby.

"Close your eyes. I don't want to get water in them." Weiss whispered over the water. Wait a minute? Close her eyes? She stared at Weiss, who's smile fell a bit. Ruby felt a hand grasp her left hand. "You can trust me. It'll be easier for you if you can't see me, right?" That was true, but- "If you want me to stop, just say so." Weiss reassured.

"O...okay then." Ruby answered, deciding to just let it happen. Weiss knew far more than she did. And she could trust Weiss, for sure. She closed her eyes, and relaxed her aching muscles, waiting for Weiss. For a moment, nothing happened, then Ruby heard the persistent splash of the water die down a little.

"Just turning the water down a bit." Weiss said, before a splashing noise nearby meant Weiss had sat down beside her again. Then, Ruby felt warm water on her legs, a relief from the chilly air, and smiled at the sensation. She could feel her blush fading as the water started to move up, slowly but surely, across the rest of her body, rising up her legs, dancing across her arms, collecting at her chest. The droplets teased her nipples, and Ruby felt them perk up at the attention, forcing her to suppress a moan of pleasure.

This felt so nice. Weiss knew what she was doing.

Something cold splatted onto Ruby's chest as the flow of warmth stopped, and this new liquid continued in a searingly chilly line down her front, across her arms and legs, ending at her feet. A familiar rosy smell hit her nostrils, ending her confusion as to what this cold stuff was; it was her own body wash.

"Even your own shower gel smells of roses. That's cute, Ruby." Weiss purred from above, as her hands wrapped around Ruby's legs, rubbing the soap into them.

"It's kinda my thing." Ruby replied softly. "Yang started it, then I just kept it up."

"Nice." Weiss commented, her hands moving up to Ruby's thighs. Her every touch was gentle, every movement making Ruby shiver and relax with equal measure. As Weiss spread the suds over her body, Ruby fought to contain her moans. This felt... this felt so nice. She was so gentle with her, her touch more and more sensual as opposed to rough, criss-crossing her as a skater might an ice rink. The tickle was causing heat to flow into her groin, slowly but surely.

Ah!

Ruby let out an involuntary squeak of pleasure as Weiss' hands reached her breasts.

They weren't moving either, saying affixed to her mounds.

"Does that feel nice?" Weiss asked, as she started to play, Ruby feeling her hands work her girls like dough.

There was no question there.

"It's... it's nice, Weiss." Ruby responded.

"You know, I can tell at this point that you're trying to stay quiet. Don't." Weiss purred. "If it feels good, don't hold it back. It helps me to know what's good and what's not."

"I can... may- ah!" Ruby whispered back, though a groan of pleasure escaped her lips as Weiss returned her attention to her nipples, now softly tweaking and twisting them, and this time, Ruby could hold it no longer. With each of Weiss' movements, Ruby felt her breathing become heavier and heavier, accompanied by the occasional moan as Weiss massaged the soap into a tender spot.

The water soon started splashing down onto Ruby, and she felt the bubbly remnants of the rosy shower gel leave her body, one part at a time. Where the water touched her, Ruby could also feel one of Weiss' hands gently wiping off the soap. She also felt Weiss' lips on the nape of her neck again, tenderly kissing and lavishing affection while her hands cleaned Ruby off.

As the water stopped hitting her for the second time, she felt Weiss' lips upon her own now, and she kissed back blindly, reaching up to encircle Weiss, who fell lightly on top of her. The kiss was soft and tender, not like the savage rush that last night had been. Ruby ran her fingers through Weiss' soft, perfect hair as they broke apart. There it was again. That small, sweet smile that Weiss would always do when she was with her.

"How was that?" Weiss whispered, her toothpaste scented breath upon Ruby.

"That was... I can't even..." Ruby breathed, trying to get her mouth under control. Weiss looked worried now, her smile was fading. No! "It was so good, Weiss. I've never felt anything like that before." Her smile returned, followed by a light blush.

"Ruby..." Weiss took a deep breath, closing her eyes, like she was steeling herself. "We can go further, if you want." Her eyes darted downwards for a split second, and Ruby understood what she meant. The heat in her groin was almost unbearable by now, a pressure that needed release. But was this okay to do?

"I mean, we can?" Ruby said. Weiss instantly registered her confusion, judging by her eyes, but her smile remained.

"Just copy me." Weiss replied. She then locked lips with Ruby again, her touch still gentle, while her hands slithered slowly down Ruby's front, slipping around her breasts, tracing lines down her stomach, until they reached the point just above Ruby's pleasure button. Ruby hastened to copy her lover, letting her hands slide down Weiss' body, coming to rest on the heiress' nipples, which were rock hard. Weiss had been playing with hers, right?

She started flicking and tweaking them, and Weiss broke the kiss.

"You were doing this to me, right?" Ruby asked, before an idea hit her. "Actually, do you mind if I lead us?"

She hoped that she wouldn't mess this up.

"S-sure, Ruby, I ah, don't mind." Weiss replied, trying and failing to hold in her own moans, but Ruby could understand it. She'd been the one being pleasured, washed and cleaned, whereas Weiss hadn't had any affection from her.

Time to change that.

Ruby pushed Weiss down onto the floor, finally finding a bit of confidence of her own, and hovered over the top of her on her arms and knees. Weiss looked up at her with a face full of trepidation as she lowered herself, allowing her to kiss the heiress. She immediately obliged, as Ruby's hand snaked down towards her flower, slowly but sensually, going across her neck, over the hills of her boobs, flicking the nipples on the way, down her stomach, until they stopped right above her petals. Ruby smiled in the kiss as Weiss gasped and groaned into her mouth, sure that she'd copied Weiss the right way.

That was the way to do it.

This was going right!

Ruby broke the kiss and looked at Weiss.

Her eyes were slightly glazed over now, her face giving nothing save a relaxed smile, though it almost seemed like she knew how confident Ruby was now.

"I'm going to show you what it was like, last night." Ruby whispered in Weiss ear. "How nice it was." Weiss blushed a little, painting the upper regions of her face with colour.

"Do it then, dolt." Weiss muttered back with a smirk. "Can't you see I've been waiting?" Ruby responded with a smirk of her own.

Welp, no reason to keep her waiting then.

Ruby knelt down beside Weiss, and looked down upon her prize. She was still as beautiful as ever, almost flawless in the perfection of her body, as if a sculptor miles past his time had meticulously crafted each and every curve of her body. Her hair still flowed behind her, though errant strands now reached out above her head, a consequence of their current activity. Weiss had an arm under her head now, the other lying limply by her side. She was breathing slowly, calmly, very relaxed. She was watching Ruby with interest, something that only put more pressure on the younger girl.

She reached out and put a single hand on the heiress' forehead, causing a flash of indignation to spark in the heiress' eyes, though it was covered when Ruby slowly slid her eyes shut.

"Trust me?" she whispered in the heiress' ear.

"Trust you, dolt." she murmured back. "You really think you need to ask me that at this point?" Her comment stung a little.

"Sorry for loving you." Ruby retorted softly. "Sorry about wanting you to feel good."

Weiss' face fell a little, and Ruby instantly felt a pang of regret in her gut.

"Sorry, Ruby." Weiss said. "That was a stupid thing to say." Well, it was, but...

"Stupid answer to a stupid question. I say we're even, Weiss." Ruby replied, and she watched the smile return to Weiss' face, the giggle she knew would come from what she'd said. Ruby leaned over and kissed Weiss again, pinching one of her nipples at the same time. Weiss gasped reflexively, and Ruby darted her tongue in, using the same trick Weiss had used in her sleep. She met fierce resistance from Weiss' own tongue, though the heiress did not break the kiss. As Ruby waged the war on Weiss mouth, darting and plunging her tongue, clashing with the heiress', her fingers started to slip inside two flowers.

Weiss'... and her own.

She found her own pleasure spots easily, but she had no idea about Weiss. Moaning from her own hand, she found Weiss' pleasure button easily, the small little nub fairly smaller compared to hers, though it caused Weiss to... was that a whimper? Ruby broke the kiss just in time to hear Weiss cry out as she tested a specific part of Weiss' inner fold.

There it was.

 _Schlick, schlick._

Ruby sped up both her hands as Weiss moaned again and again with each curl of her finger and push of her thumb on her bean. Her own walls were clenching around her own hand, the sight of Weiss blindly spasming and splashing as she fingered her only adding to Ruby's own arousal.

"Ruby, I... I'm close!" Ruby heard Weiss call out as she herself felt her insides start to clench up. She wasn't far away either, her climax was practically already there.

What was it that Weiss did last night? That final part?

And then it clicked.

Nearing the bursting point, Ruby shifted around so that she was in front of Weiss flower, but more importantly, Weiss' leg, which had thankfully propped up on the foot to give the heiress more stability. Nearing the bursting point, Ruby opened her own legs, and put her own rapidly moistening entrance near her target.

"I'm finishing!" Ruby yelled out as her juices would not be contained any longer. Her ecstasy exploded, and while still working Weiss' petals, she sprayed her fem cum all over Weiss' leg, splashes of it drenching her entrance and limp hand with even more of Ruby's juices. Ruby kept pumping, determined to give Weiss the best that she had, and her body jerked and spasmed in response, showering Weiss' leg with more and more of her nectar, before she fell back, exhausted.

Just as her juices ran out and her own hand stopped moving, she heard Weiss cry out before Ruby saw a whitish fluid cover her hand, gushed out by the heiress' flower, reaching her forearm in its intensity, once, twice, three times before it finally stopped. The younger girl ceased her deed, before withdrawing her hand, and falling against Weiss, hearing the heiress recover her breath.

"Wow... that was... I can't begin to..." Weiss mumbled.

Was she speechless again?

Just like Ruby before?

That was when Weiss was cute. Really cute.

"Me too." Ruby replied, softly. She grabbed the still spraying shower head, and washed the sticky... stuff off of her arm, before spraying Weiss' leg with it to get off most of her juices off of it. Weiss' breathing was heavy, and the stench of sweat was everywhere. She fell upon the heiress, wrapping her arms around her, giving her a peck on the cheeks as her own body was pressed against the heiress'.

"I love you." the both said, at the exact same time.

* * *

From outside the bathroom door, in Team RWBY's dorm room, a tall man stood, back against the wall, listening to the sounds of the two lovers. His hands clasped a black book with snow white pages, and he was reading one of the beginning pages. He wore black trousers and a black office long-sleeve shirt with no tie. He had a small grin on his face as he looked at the bathroom door out of the corner of his crimson eyes, before brushing a lock of his wavy dark blond hair out of his face.

"So the plot thickens." he muttered to himself, closing the book silently. His grin became a smile. "Like so many others before. Where will you go, I wonder?"

He snapped his fingers, then waited.

Seconds later, Ruby and Weiss' screams could be heard from the bathroom.

"Damn these showers!" Weiss cursed loudly, even as a squeak could be heard from Ruby alongside numerous splashes.

"Weiss, you're spraying me with it!" Ruby cried out. "Eee! That's so COLD!"

"Thank me later, girls." The man said, a slight joking tone to his voice, his grin returning. "Or don't. In any case, the half-minute was worth it."

He winked, his right eye glowing a bright red as his left closed, before he vanished from the spot, without a trace.


	5. Chapter 5

**Another day, another view explosion. Still, happy to say that the day I release this is my birthday, sooo... happy birthday me I guess. In any case, took a little longer just because studying for university is a thing I gotta do, and I had a bit of writer's block. Still, happy to release chapter 5 and finally call this a story!**

 **Enjoy!**

 ***Update* Version 1.2 of this chapter, did a bit of grammar/spelling combing as I said in Chapter 8's A/N. Hopefully I got it all.**

* * *

Blake pushed away her plate, which had been practically full of rice, different kinds of fish and a salad. She leant back in her armchair, satisfied, and looking back at her equally satisfied partner, who'd finished a while ago, but was now watching her, an almost contented smile on her face.

"Glad you knew this place." Yang commented. "It's just purr-fect. Maybe we should take Ruby and Weiss here sometime."

"Sure." Blake replied, ignoring the pun typical of Yang's every second sentence.

The truth was, she hadn't known it until just recently.

She cast her mind back to when she'd found out this morning.

* * *

"Blaaake! He's only playing!"

Blake was running through Vale, hard, that yapping hellhound right on her tail. She'd had enough of this game of chase. They'd been 'playing' it all morning, if the word 'play' was a substitute for 'torture'.

She dashed around a corner, leaving a shadow clone that the dog leaped at, distracting it for a moment.

She started to run forward, not noticing the hand that came out from the entrance to an alleyway.

Blake was grabbed by the scruff of the neck before she could react, and pulled into the alleyway by an almost impossible strength. A hand was around her waist the next moment, and she was held very close to a male body, before she and the man holding her leapt up in the air, stopping around about twenty feet in the air. A glance around showed Blake two black trousered legs with smart boots were holding them up.

"Quiet. I'm helping you." a male voice hissed closer to her ear. He was helping her? How? "If you want to escape the dog, stay quiet and still."

Blake didn't have any time to react to this before the little dog came flying through the alley, stopping directly underneath them. His grip was tight. Whoever this stranger was, she could tell he wouldn't drop her.

Unless she struggled.

"Zwei? You can't find her?" Yang called after the dog, entering the alley. Blake felt the hand leave her mouth moments before she heard the sound of a rock smashing against the way she'd come in. Yang spun around. "Zwei! This way!"

She ran out of the alley, the impulsive little thing following her, yapping all the while.

Blake felt her racing heart finally calm down as they left. The one that held her dropped down to the ground, landing and releasing Blake, who got a chance to finally turn around and see her rescuer. He was half a head taller than her, dark blond hair, black formal shirt and trousers. Dark red eyes, a somewhat handsome, if almost ethereal face, nothing out of the ordinary. No obvious weapons.

"You're welcome." the stranger said, then rolled up his long sleeve to glance at a golden band around his right wrist that Blake guessed, by appearance, was a watch of some kind. "Cutting it close for time." He turned his gaze back on Blake. "Still, glad I was passing by."

Blake said nothing in response, not sure what to make of the man. He gave a quiet chuckle in response, one that caused the very hairs on the back of Blake's neck to stand up.

"Listen, you're not one for talking. and I don't have a lot of time. In two minutes, your friend will be back, ready to apologize and with that dog under control." he said, talking quite fast, his hands clasped together. Blake focused on his every word. "She'll leave and come back with the suggestion to go to a seafood restaurant near the docks. What I need you to do is suggest a place called "Tyson's Tycoon", but only after she suggests seafood. It's located in the heart of Vale. Your friend will agree with you and you'll go there, instead. Is that all clear?"

"Why should I agree to this?" Blake asked him. It was a strange proposition. Was he a salesman for this place?

"Your teammates are gradually developing feelings for each other. Soon," he checked the gold watch again, "they'll fall for each other. The more time they have alone, the better. But if you go with your friend's suggestion," his gaze grew harsh and his voice almost felt... darker now, "things are going to go badly for all of you. Things'll happen, and none to do with me. I'm trying to stop that before it happens."

"Why should I trust you?" Blake asked. Before the stranger could reply, he turned his head and quickly glanced behind him.

"My time's up." the stranger announced. "Trust me, don't trust me, well..." he paused. "I'll let you decide. But in my opinion, Tyson's is better. The tuna there is something to die for."

He winked, his right eye flashing a bright, glowing red, before he vanished from the spot.

What was with that guy?

* * *

Ruby laid in Weiss' bed, alongside its owner, her limbs intertwined with Weiss' own. Their fingers were interlinked, the heiress holding Ruby close as she dozed. Ruby, for her part, held her lover tightly. She hoped that Weiss could feel her love for her through her touch. Her soft head was on Ruby's chest, and Ruby unhooked one of her hands to stroke the heiress' hair, watching as the 'o' of Weiss' mouth changed to a sweet smile at the attention, and she tightened her arms around Ruby.

Here, beside her love, Ruby was in heaven.

She couldn't believe it had gone so smoothly. And being with Weiss felt... right, somehow. Like it had meant to be.

Was Weiss perfect? No, no way.

But she was perfect for Ruby.

She felt her scroll buzz, and stopped the stroking of Weiss' hair as she checked her scroll. An app was flashing; the Duel app.

Ruby knew what it was. One of the teachers here had developed it, though Ruby didn't know which one. Sometimes, various students or authorized people would put up a challenge on the app. They would offer something to sweeten the deal, if someone that challenged them beat them, or bet something and request that the challenger bet something in return. Most of the higher ups didn't bother, but it was there, in case she needed some practice. Still, her own rank was high, meaning this would be someone like Pyrrha or Yang or someone good.

She tapped the app, and checked her note. It was a challenge directed at her, though the name was strange. The name of the account challenging her was named Vade. The picture featured a tall man who looked about twenty to Ruby. His blonde hair and blue eyes shone in the light, maybe in the light of the desert behind him. Underneath this, a single line of text.

'Interested in your fighting style. Meet at Beacon's arena in half an hour. 200 lien if you beat me. No loss on defeat. Best of 1, see you there.'

200 lien was quite a bit. Maybe she should take this guy on? How hard could he be?

Ruby checked his profile. The first thing she looked at was his rank, knowing she was at 34 at Beacon. She stared at the screen as it showed his rank to be a red '?'. A question mark? That was all she could get from it?

She checked the help option on the side of the level indicator.

'Ranks indicate the candidate's level of combat strength in relation to yours. They range from between 1 and 200, with lower numbers indicating higher strength. The color of the Rank indicates the difficulty of the fight when comparing your level to your opponent's, with Blue indicating an easy fight, while Green, Yellow, Orange, and Red indicate rising levels of difficulty. If you cannot see the battle opponent's Rank, check your connection. If a question mark is displayed, the Rank has been purposefully hidden by an administrator, though you may still use the colour of the question mark for comparisons.'

Red, huh?

It was a while since she'd seen a red Rank against her.

Maybe this would be fun.

She started to slide, slowly but surely, out of the comfort of Weiss' grip, leaving the bed, before turning back and looking at the heiress, who was now splayed out, an empty indent in the mattress of the bed the only remains of her presence. Ruby rolled her eyes, before smiling to herself and grabbing the cover of her bed.

With an almost tender grasp, she draped it over the heiress, before reaching over and shifting the pillow she was lying on so that it better supported her head, then brushed an errant strand of alabaster hair out of Weiss' face. Job done, she bent over and gave Weiss a peck on the cheek, before she crept out of the room, sliding the door shut behind her, leaving a contented Weiss behind.

* * *

Ruby stepped into the training arena at Beacon. She felt the familiar hum as it powered up. She'd done this before.

This place was very familiar to Ruby. It was like a coliseum gone sci-fi, seats where students would watch a demonstration or a match. There were two screens that would display the aura indicators. This place was the practice area in class, and sparring would often take place here. She looked all the way up the checkered floor, until she saw him.

His dark trousers and smart black shirt accentuated his features well. A lock of blond hair was brushed out of the man's face, almost like he could see with his eyes closed. Then, they opened, showing Ruby two crimson eyes that stared right into the depths of her skull, and a smile that, while friendly, combined with the eyes, seemed creepy. Yeeaahh. Very creepy.

"Ah." he said, as if noticing Ruby for the first time, his right shoulder to her. "Ruby Rose. A pleasure to meet you."

"You're Vade, right?" Ruby asked him. He nodded. "Why are your eyes red? I thought they were blue on your photo."

They didn't look so darn... scary in that photo.

"Well, I was wearing blue contacts on the day I took it." Vade responded. "Didn't realize until after, but it was a nice shot. Still..." he paused, looking Ruby up and down, tilting his head, which didn't do anything to alleviate Ruby's feeling of... just plain creeped out. "I'll warn you now, my Semblance is Knowledge, so I might... learn some things you don't want me to know. It's unavoidable."

Things? Like her and Weiss?

"Oookkkaaay then." Ruby said, unfurling Crescent Rose, gripping the familiar hilt as her aura came into view on the screen. "You might wanna think about how much lien you put up there." she grinned, her cocky battle state coming on in full force, the confidence her beloved gave her flowing like a drug through her blood. "Sometimes it doesn't matter how much you know." Vade's grin widened, and he crossed his legs, hovering up until he was a full meter above the ground.

Ruby watched as he slowly closed his eyes, his own aura appearing on the aura indicator. He stretched his arms out to the side, and from behind him, appeared... were those books?

They were too. Two books, spinning like throwing stars, ran across the back of his arms, coming to rest just a couple of inches from the palms of his pale hands, still spinning, just hanging there. Then, he opened his eyes.

His right eye was glowing.

As in actually glowing.

His smile became a smirk.

"Ruby, you made a grave error there." Vade intoned, his voice somehow deeper, more echoey (was that even a word?), darker. "Knowledge is power, and I know a lot..."

He swung his arms forwards, the two books soaring towards Ruby, whirling like tops.

Ruby dashed forwards.

Scythe met book in mid air, and a white flash engulfed the room.

* * *

Weiss stirred in her sleep, her hand clenching Ruby's. She could feel her warmth beside her even as she started to stir into wakefulness. Today had been a good day.

Just in the morning alone, she'd managed to confess her feelings to Ruby, and be accepted by her even though how much of a friend Weiss'd been had been... questionable in the past. To say she was shocked when Ruby returned her feelings really showed how much a lover like this was worth.

She smiled and rubbed the hand she was grasping, expecting to feel the soft skin from before.

Except her hand found nothing but paper.

Weiss' eyes shot open immediately. Sure enough, Ruby wasn't there, the thing she was leaning on now was a pillow, the body heat she'd felt merely her own.

She looked at the thing in her hand, which turned out to be a curled up note. She unfurled it slowly, the blood only just now reaching her fingers.

"I'm at the training arena. Got a challenge. I'll be back soon!" was written on it, alongside a smiley face. Weiss couldn't help but quietly laugh at it. Ruby did have her little quirks, it had to be said.

She stretched, and got up out of bed. If she were to hurry, she might be able to see some of this.

* * *

Ruby span her scythe in front of her, deflecting the infernal books for one of so many times. They were whirling around her, both of them, and every time one of them struck, Ruby knew the other one would also come at her from an awkward behind angle. She'd deflect it (having already tried to slice them in half and failing) and the one behind her, and the cycle would repeat. There were a couple of sore areas from where the two had connected with her and knocked her down. Her aura was at about half.

Vade stood in the center of the arena, his smirk still there, eye still glowing red. Man, Ruby had never known a fight to be so annoying. He hadn't taken a hit just because of these stupid books, she hadn't had a chance to get near him!

"Enjoying my little game?" he asked, as Ruby tried once again to break out of his lock, but everywhere she tried, one of the books was right there to meet her and block her.

"No! These books suck!" Ruby yelled back as she saw them close in again for another attack. Taking the chance, she rolled out of the way, causing the books to collide with each other, before triggering her semblance and flying towards Vade with all the speed that she could muster, homing in on his glowing eye, slashing across, only to meet... nothing?

Ruby stopped and looked around, before spotting him in the exact same place she'd been in before, the books now circling around him.

He'd teleported?

Was that even possible?

He held his hands out as if saying 'I don't know', but his grin uprooted that definition of his action. Two more books had appeared from his back, and were now hovering alongside the first two, all four of them black with pure white pages, spinning until they looked like black circles more than rectangles.

How many of them did he have?

"You know, you've impressed me, Ruby." Vade said, and Ruby caught her breath as her opponent took a couple of steps back. His gaze quickly went to the empty stands before focusing on Ruby again, and the hardness in his voice seemed to lessen. "With how hard you fight... I definitely wouldn't have taken you for a student."

Ruby recognized the compliment and blushed a little with pride. But she knew it wasn't just herself she was fighting for.

It was the girl she left back in bed. Weiss had been all she was thinking about throughout this fight, every single time she blocked a book, it brought her one step closer to going back and seeing her. It didn't matter that Vade hadn't taken a hit. Soon, he would, and it would be a milestone in this fight. Vade tilted his head, his gaze suddenly growing a little stronger.

"Ah. So that's your secret." he intoned. Ruby's breath caught in her throat. Did he mean Weiss? He reached up and tapped his nose. "That's cute. Very cute. Don't worry, I won't tell." Ruby blushed now. Had he found out just by her thinking about it? "Welp," he cracked his knuckles, "it's time for this song and dance to end. Even if you're unusually strong for a student, what you face is beyond you."

Ruby raised her scythe immediately, ready for the four books to be on her again. Vade however, did not move to strike her.

"You know, there's a reason why my rank is a question mark." Vade continued. "Rank means nothing to me. I transcended that system long ago. They recognized that." He jumped up, hovering about ten feet off the ground, his legs crossed once again. "Don't believe me?" His smile widened. "Then how about I show you?"

He pointed at Ruby, then before she could react, he snapped his fingers.

An explosion so intense Ruby felt her aura shatter at the first impact.

Flying through the air, hitting the ground with a painful thump.

She barely heard the AI declaring Vade the winner of the match.

Ruby blacked out, the last thing on her mind flashing fleetingly.

Weiss... please help...


	6. Chapter 6

**Oh. My. Gosh. I have never seen this before. Not with one of my creations.**

 **I've barely gotten off first base with this story, and already I'm looking at nearly sixty followers and over 5k views. Holy crap. Holeey crap.**

 **I mean... clearly you guys like this work a lot. Just been back from a mad party and I've showered all the cake off (true story; had a cake thrown at my head, and I'm not as fast as Ruby). In any case, glad to see you're enjoying it quite a bit. In any case, for those of you who didn't appreciate Chapter Five, I can understand why. But it was necessary, and CrazeBlaze has the right idea (check out his review for more).**

 **Without further ado, let's begin!**

 ***Update* Version 1.2 of this chapter, did a bit of grammar/spelling combing as I said in Chapter 8's A/N. Hopefully I got it all.**

* * *

Ruby slowly cracked open her eyes. It was very dark.

Someone was standing above them. Red eyes.

Was it Vade?

Yeah, there was no mistaking those eyes.

His right wasn't glowing anymore, but in the dark, his... creepiness didn't go down at all.

At least he wasn't smiling like he did in the arena. That would have been scary.

As Ruby focused more on his face, his eyebrows rose, and he turned away from her.

"She's awake." he reported, words clearly aimed at someone else. Who?

Vade then backed off, and Weiss' familiar visage came into view.

She looked really different to Ruby now.

Her pristine white hair was in a mess, her cheeks were a bit puffy, and her eyes looked kinda bloodshot. That was all Ruby could see before she was kissed on the lips by Weiss, the familiar feeling flowing through her like liquid warmth. She relaxed into the kiss, wrapping her tired arms around Weiss.

Yet Weiss broke off the kiss early before Ruby could get fully into it, and turned towards Vade, who was out of sight. Ruby propped herself up on an elbow to see a harsh glare on Weiss face, but it wasn't directed at her. Vade stood at the foot of the... black glass table that she was on, giving a very neutral face in response, though his head was tilted to the side a little.

"I've waited long enough." Weiss said, her voice stern and demanding. "You said you'd talk about what happened when Ruby was awake. So talk." She sounded like she was trying hard to keep her temper in. Vade gave a quiet chuckle in response, and Ruby saw something move in her peripheral vision, though when she turned her head, there was nothing there.

"Glad my hunch was right." Vade responded, and Ruby whipped her gaze back around to him. "In any case, all you wanted to know was what happened to Ruby. Well, I can tell you now, Ruby," he turned his gaze upon her, "that was nowhere near my true power, what you faced in the arena. It was entertaining to see the way you fought though. What happened?" He raised a finger, and winked, his right eye now emitting that sinister red glow. "An explosion, caused as the reaction to a tiny implosion. Created right next to where Ruby was." While he talked, Ruby tried to take it all in.

Nowhere near his true strength? Was all the things with the books just a little of his power? And was the explosion that broke through her aura something he could do too? How strong was he?

"Wait, WHAT?" Weiss yelled out, outraged, the volume of her voice making Ruby's ears ring. "You did something so dangerous just in a practice match?!"

"In my defense, I have done it many times before, Weiss." Vade replied, waving his hand in the universal 'calm down' gesture. "It's very easy for someone like me. But, if it had been just a little larger," his voice darkened again, "young Miss Rose would probably be here, just in more... pieces. Thank your personal deity that I know what I'm doing." Weiss bristled at that, but then, Ruby noticed a sudden thoughtful expression on her face in the midst of her anger.

"Isn't that impossible? Ripping a hole in space? Without any kind of technology?" she queried. Now Ruby was lost. What was her love getting at? Vade seemingly had no difficulty in understanding the... whatever... that she maybe wasn't picking up.

"Trust me on this, Weiss." Vade responded with a wink of his right eye. "Having the Semblance of Knowledge, knowing a lot, means being able to do a lot, too."

There was a silence that hung in the air after his statement. Ruby tried to find something to say, to break it.

"Where are we?" Ruby asked, looking around. They seemed to be in some kind of basement, if not for the shelves and shelves of black books, the very same kind that Vade used in battle, all unmarked and stacked neatly. The floor shone with an ethereal white light upon a black ceiling. It was strangely... chilly, like when Vade revealed his eye to you for the first time.

"Welcome to my home and shop, Kurai Raiburari." Vade responded. Kurai Raiburari? What was that?

"Um... what?" Ruby asked, confused. Weiss rolled her eyes.

"That's a very old language, dolt." Weiss explained. "It means The Dark Library in English."

"Cool." Ruby said, sliding off the table, standing with little effort. She'd ignore that dolt for now. As she looked up at the shelves, they seemed to stretch endlessly from side to side, lit only only by the floor's light. Nothing but more black books, and a thin, white mist blanketed the bottom of the room, making it harder and harder to see further away. It looked very... gloomy. She turned back to Vade, who had outstretched a hand to each of them.

"It's easy to get lost here." Vade said. Ruby watched Weiss take the hand he had offered her without question, and gave her a curious look, which the heiress noticed.

"He's not lying, Ruby. Take his hand." Weiss insisted, her voice much harsher than before. "This place has defenses that activate when you aren't holding his hand."

Defenses?

Well... okay then.

Ruby reached out and took the hand, noticing that his hand was even paler than her own, almost ghost-like, a statue's skin tone. Holding it, its touch didn't feel... warm at all. It was like she was holding something... dead. An inner chill that stole the heat from her hand.

As Vade led them down, Ruby looked at the books on the shelves on her side. They were all the same; Black cover, white pages. It seemed that Vade had read her mind, however, as his eyes darted back towards her, before returning to the path ahead.

"They're all written by different people, and all of them are stories." Vade explained, as they walked straight past a black, steel-like door. "Each depicts a world not unlike our own, ones where the plots are different, some where we change as people to fit the writer's purposes." Ruby remained silent, taking it all in, still watching the shelves as she passed them. "Sometimes new people are introduced into the world, and sometimes, even our world itself changes within these pages. But it is still fundamentally our world."

"Why do you keep them?" Weiss asked. Ruby turned her gaze upon the heiress, seeing her staring straight ahead, her eyes sharply focused forward, like Vade. That was a good question. Why did Vade have them, and how were there so many?

"The books? I watch over their writers through their words." Vade answered. "I also remove those that have fallen into the past."

As Ruby's eyes passed over the many books, she noticed one that looked... strangely glass-like. Grey cracks zig-zagged across the cover, and the pages seemed... yellowy in comparison. She felt a tug on the hand held by Vade, and she hastened to catch up. It wasn't long before they ended up at a black door, and Vade let go of them both, before opening the door for them with a bow of his head.

* * *

Exiting the massive library, Ruby found herself in a smaller room, with a black wooden desk with a computer on it. A worn chair sat behind it, and two tinted windows were opposite the desk. Several chairs were before it, each red cushion clearly more well maintained than the desk chair. As Vade closed the door behind him, Ruby turned around to see that it blended in perfectly with the dark purple wallpaper of the room.

"And lo, we have the room everyone sees when they have business with me." Vade continued, trowing his hands out to indicate the room around them. "Buying what they need, though most can't sell me what I deal in." At this, Ruby felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned to see Weiss' eyes on her. Her mouth was a straight line, though it curved up a little when she saw Ruby's face.

"He's an information broker." Weiss explained. Ruby nodded, but Weiss continued. "He sells you information."

"And I'm one of the best." Vade said, sitting behind his desk, beckoning them to sit on the chairs. Ruby did so, but she then felt two hands force themselves in-between her and the chair. She looked up to see Weiss above her, and got a smile from the heiress, a reassuring one. She responded with one of her own, before she looked at Vade once again. "I know most things about anyone you ask about, anything about the world we live in. If my Semblance doesn't do it, then I find out myself. How much it costs," he raised an eyebrow at this, "depends on how hard it was for me to get it. The tour, by the way, was on the house."

That could be handy. Ruby thought for a moment, then decided to ask.

"Well, um, who are team RWBY facing in the next round of the tournament?" Ruby asked.

"Ruby!" Weiss reacted immediately. "That's cheating!" Her voice took on a chastising tone. Vade gave a smirk in response, the only sign of amusement he gave.

"The Vytal tournament, right?" he asked, tilting his head, his smile widening. Ruby's heart quickened a little. "Well, it's random chance, so you'd either need someone with an ability to predict the future accurately... or me."

"Wait, you know?" Ruby asked, disbelievingly. Vade raised a hand to his chin, covering his smile.

Did he really know?

"I wouldn't be a good broker if I didn't have my... ways." Vade responded. "Knowledge can mean a lot of things, Ruby. But still, the information is very hard to find, coupled with the fact that you are using this to gain an advantage in an event where money is involved..." he turned his gaze away from them for a moment, then locked eyes with Ruby. "Okay. You can have it, for fifty lien."

50 Lien? Just for a prediction on who they'd face? It seemed Weiss had the same idea.

"Why would we buy a prediction that might not even be right? How can we even trust you?" Weiss asked him.

"I think I've proven that I can know about things I shouldn't know, congratulations on your relationship, by the way." Vade replied. Ruby felt herself blush at his words. "Though if my customer wants information badly, they're prepared to pay much more than what you're paying. Fifty, Ruby. That's my price."

Should she pay it? Take the chance? Ruby looked up at Weiss, who glanced back, a question in her eyes. Ruby stared back, until Weiss rolled her eyes, then reached behind her. Wait. Weiss was going to pay it for her?!

"No, we can find out on our own, um, thanks." Ruby said, quickly. Weiss froze, and Vade tilted his head in what seemed to be a confused look, before he smiled again and closed the laptop.

"So be it." Vade replied. "Still, give me a call if there's anything you want to know."

* * *

"So why didn't you get it?"

"Weiss, I wanted it, but I didn't want to cheat and I didn't want you to pay for it."

Ruby and Weiss sat on one of a circle of benches surrounding the giant statue in Beacon's courtyard. Ruby's left hand was in Weiss right. Apart from two other people sat there, nobody else was present. Ruby was looking up at the stars, each little speck of light combining to create an entrancing picture of beauty that only one other had so far been able to match.

"Do you think he would have been right?" Weiss asked from beside her. Ruby continued to gaze up at the stars.

"I don't know." Ruby answered with a sigh. "He was so tough to fight. And that question mark rank thing's totally throwing me for a loop."

"I was there for the last part of your fight." Weiss said, and Ruby felt a tug on her hand. She looked down into Weiss' eyes, and saw a small hint of sadness in her expression. "It looked hard." Ruby turned away.

Yeah. It was hard.

"Those stupid books!" Ruby exclaimed, feeling Weiss jump a little beside her. "I hit them, they come back, I hit them again, they come back, I try to move, they block me, I move again, the other one's there! But, wait," she paused, realizing something, "did you see how quickly he knocked me out? It was like he was playing with me!"

She felt a soft leg against hers, and the next moment, she felt herself being pulled into Weiss' arms. She submitted, laying her head on Weiss' shoulder as her arms arced around her back, comforting like the arms of a mother around a saddened child. It was incredibly patronizing, but right now, Ruby didn't care all that much. It was Weiss, after all. Something like this was rare.

"Ruby, he can't be unbeatable." Weiss said, softly, very un... Weiss-like. "Everyone has a weakness. I have my weaknesses, you have your weaknesses, and Vade has his weaknesses. Maybe when you fight him again, you'll find what he's weak against." She felt a pat on her back as Ruby laid there, enjoying the warm embrace. She blew a strand of white hair away from her mouth, and put her arms around the heiress.

She was right.

Vade couldn't be invulnerable.

"You're right." Ruby replied, with a sigh.

"Of course I'm right." Weiss responded. "In fact, I might have an idea. Remember the way that he keeps you in one spot? Why do you think he does that?"

"To be-" Ruby had been about to say annoying, but it was only then that it had clicked for her. His not moving, stalling her, stopping her from getting a hit on him until he finally used that... what was it, an implosion attack? Did he have access to that kind of power in the beginning? Probably not, unless...

"He was charging that attack." Ruby said, her voice growing more and more confident. "He charges up that implosion attack from the beginning, doesn't move to conserve his energy, stalls me so that I can't get to him and stop it, then when he's done, he just blasts me away! That's it!"

"Exactly." Weiss responded. Ruby felt a peck on her cheek so reminiscent of Weiss now. Something buzzed in Weiss' pocket, and Ruby felt her reach for it and pull it out.

"What's the word?" Ruby asked, turning around and sitting on Weiss lap. She showed Ruby the message from Yang.

'Just tried to call Ruby, but her scroll's off. Blakey and I are in a hotel for tonight, still don't know how I ended up here. Anyways, you two have fun tonight, will catch up in the morning. Oh, and Blake said congrats, don't know if it's her or the wine talking right now. See ya tomorrow!'

Ruby fumbled in her own pocket and ripped out her scroll. Sure enough, it was off.

Wait a minute. Congrats? What did Blake mean?

"Darn it." Ruby mumbled as Weiss put her scroll away, covering up her blush and confusion. She turned towards Weiss. "So what do you wanna do now?"

Weiss gave that small smile of hers in response.

What it meant, Ruby couldn't tell.


	7. Chapter 7

**Welp, you guys broke sixty followers and 6k on the views count. I am just watching in awe right now. It's crazy. It's absolutely crazy. But there again, crazy is the first C of my name, so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised all that much in terms of craziness.**

 **Still, its awesome that everyone's continuing to watch even after I shook things up a bit in terms of plot. Still, I'm running this train with a destination in mind, so you can be rest assured that everything I do was put in, well, normally for a reason.**

 **I won't keep you guys waiting now. Roll onward with the next chapter!**

 ***Update* Version 1.2 of this chapter, did a bit of grammar/spelling combing as I said in Chapter 8's A/N. Hopefully I got it all.**

* * *

So this was what it was like.

Lying next to the one you loved.

Who loved you.

Not just for who you are in society, for the title you had, but for who you are as a person, what your inner self was.

Weiss gave a relaxed sigh as she stretched out. Ruby laid next to her, curled around her midsection under the covers. The starlit sky shone through the windows, painting the room with a soft light, something that almost seemed to make it almost... relaxed in a way, as if undisturbed by the hustle and bustle of the day. Nighttime was truly her favorite part of each day.

Maybe that sounded contradictory, but things didn't really have to make sense right now.

She could feel Ruby shifting around her front, two arms snaking around her, feeling a head on her chest, a nuzzle of what had to have been a nose through her silken nightie. Weiss ran the hand she knew was on Ruby's head through her hair, feeling the smoothness of it, the softness. She lifted the covers a little, to see two silver eyes on her own. Ruby was smiling happily at her, her head on Weiss' chest, her arms around the heiress' waist.

She patted Ruby's head, watching as Ruby's eyes slowly closed.

God, Ruby could practically be Zwei's sister.

If she had a tail, it would have been wagging. She had the same appetite for attention as Zwei did, even though she didn't show it. And they were both so adorable.

The sound of heavy breathing came from Ruby. Had she fallen asleep?

Weiss turned her gaze upward. Thank god that Ruby was safe.

She felt the hand not on top of Ruby's head clench as she remembered the reason Ruby'd been in danger, and the reason she'd needed healing in the first place.

Vade.

She would stay away from him, and when she next spoke to Ruby, she'd advise her to do the same. A pang of guilt sparked in her heart.

She'd lied about the charging up part of his attack. Truthfully, Weiss had no idea how his fighting style worked, or if he even had one. His personality didn't help either. She wasn't sure if he was actually trying to be creepy, or if it was all natural for him. It was even scarier when Weiss thought about how he'd found out about their relationship. Had Ruby told him?

No, she wouldn't have.

There again, if she was listening to the advice of her father, she would consider both sides of the coin. Vade had healed Ruby immediately afterwards, and made sure they were safe while in the vault of the Dark Library. She'd let go just to test his word, when the mists around them billowed in response, and Vade had swiftly retaken her hand, clearly indicating that he didn't want her to be on the receiving end of those defenses. Whatever his facial expressions had implied, he did seem to genuinely care about them, though for what reason Weiss could not fathom.

No. Even so, he was definitely not the best of men to be around. Even if his dress sense was impressive for someone like him.

Weiss put the red-eyed man out of her mind, and relaxed into her pillow once again. As she did so, she felt Ruby shift again, sliding up her body until she emerged from the duvet, lying her head next to Weiss' on her right side.

"What are you thinking about?" Ruby asked. Crap! Think of something, think of something!

"I was just thinking about how lucky I was that you accepted me, Ruby." Weiss replied calmly.

"Duh, I love you." Ruby responded, rolling her eyes. Good, she bought it. "What do you love the most about me, if you only had to pick one thing?"

One thing? Hm, that was a tough one.

She had so many things she wanted to say, damn the second part of Ruby's question. The sparkling silver eyes that watched over her, the adorable face that just made her want to pinch her cheeks (she wouldn't tell Ruby that one!), her well maintained dark hair with red highlights, hair that she fussed over in the shower as much as Crescent Rose on the workbench.

Her personality, someone who could be so mature despite being so young, with a bit of a childish innocence stirred into her, and the tying ribbon of affection she had for those she loved. The almost trademark scent of roses that Weiss could smell no matter where Ruby was, even now there was a light hint of them that Weiss' nose could detect. Even the very way she fought now, transitioning gracefully from one method of attack to the next, her toned yet still lithe body flowing with the motions.

She'd seen that last during the fight with Vade that she'd witnessed. Again and again the black objects that Vade had been manipulating approached, intent to strike plain in their motions, and Ruby had arced her body, deflecting the first with the side of the blade of her scythe and the second with the other end of the haft. And she'd done it many times, each time the pose was different, either because Ruby was going her best to confuse her opponent, or Vade had subtly altered his attacks so that no one block would work the same way twice.

"Weiss?" Ruby called out softly. She snapped back to attention, and gasped a little - Ruby was really close now, her face only about a foot from Weiss' own. "Were you spacing out?" She had a very... what did you even call that squint-eyed, half smile she had right now? Rubyesque, that worked.

"I can't answer you." Weiss quietly replied. "There's too many things I love about you for me to pick." She felt herself blush a bit at this failure, and a little move when she heard Ruby giggle.

"That is so sweet, Weiss." Ruby cooed. "Aw, I just wanna snuggle and cuddle you!"

Weiss jumped as Ruby dived on her, her cuddle much more aggressive this time, her grip stronger than before.

"Ruby? Ruby!" Weiss shrieked as her lover's momentum took them straight off the bed in a tangle of limbs and blankets, and Weiss shut her eyes in fright, landing painfully on the floor, on top of the duvet. It wasn't bad, but her arms and knees are sore from having taken the brunt of the impact. Taking a moment to catch her breath, she felt it. Something was wriggling underneath her.

"Owww." Ruby whined. Weiss opened her eyes to discover that she was on her arms and knees, and underneath her laid Ruby, who was currently rubbing her backside after having clearly fallen on it again. Weiss, momentarily blinded to the situation by fright, felt anger cloud her mind, filling it with a fog that prevented much other thought.

"You dolt! What if one of us was seriously hurt!?" Weiss yelled, stopping as the volume of her voice made her ears ring. "Why did you..." she trailed off, as her mind finally registered the position they were in.

The duvet was underneath Ruby, and she laid there, arms to her side with the palms of her hands facing upward. One of Weiss' legs was in-between Ruby's, and had pinned her trouser bottoms in place. As she stared, the now frightened Ruby stared right back, and Weiss spotted a tear leak out of the corner of her eye, which ran down the side of her face, onto the duvet underneath her.

Calm down.

Weiss took a deep breath, then reached over and wiped the tear away from Ruby's face.

"I'm sorry." Weiss apologized. "I was just scared."

"I'm scared too." Ruby whispered back.

She was still scared of her? Crap.

"What can I do to make it better?" Weiss asked. Ruby's eyes left her for a moment, before she looked at Weiss again.

"Can you kiss me? Like when we..." she petered out, the words replaced by a blush. So she wanted one of those?

Well, Weiss could oblige.

She slowly lowered herself until she laid on top of Ruby, and brushed the younger girl's beautiful hair out of her face, closing her eyes, before she met her lips for what felt like the hundredth time today.

And it was still just as electric, just as exciting, as the first time they'd done it.

Her tongue shot out, past her teeth as it sought entrance to her lover's mouth. It met a fierce resistance from Ruby's lips, and Weiss felt her mouth clamp shut, before the crimsonette pulled away. Weiss caught her breath and opened her eyes, seeing an embarrassed expression on that oh so adorable face. It was the definition of the word 'sheepish'.

"Um, Weiss..." Ruby said, her voice soft and barely audible. "I don't..."

"You don't like it?" Weiss asked. Did she not enjoy kissing her? What had happened?

"No!" Ruby exclaimed. "I just don't like the tongue thing! It just..." she trailed off into a brief silence, and she turned away. "It just feels weird right now, when we're not doing anything... d-down there." She pointed down towards her lower regions, and blushed as Weiss met her eyes. So that was the reason.

Thank god it hadn't been like Weiss had thought.

"Okay then." Weiss whispered back. "No tongues."

Ruby turned her head back, and after not retreating when Weiss closed the gap again, she resumed the kiss.

She truly was sweeter and more innocent than Weiss had imagined.

Still, it was good that she was prepared to speak out if something was wrong.

She felt Ruby pull down the pillow from her bed and rest it under her head, before pushing Weiss to the side, allowing them to lie side by side in the twilight sparkle of the stars, lips still locked. Understanding Ruby's intent when the duvet wrapped around them, she broke the kiss as Ruby embraced her within the duvet now binding them close together, and Weiss felt a head on her chest as she laid flat, her legs entwining with Ruby's own smooth, shaven legs.

"Night, Weiss." Ruby softly spoke.

"Goodnight, Ruby." Weiss replied. "I love you."

"Love you too." came the voice below her chin, just before the weight increased on her chest, and the heiress heard the same heavy breathing sound that indicated her lover was fast asleep.

Weiss did not take long to join her in sleep.

* * *

"So how far?"

"Mercury, shut it."

"Seriously. How far?"

"Mercury... now's not the time to push me."

"How far? Just tell me."

"UGH! Just shut up already!"

Emerald stormed out of an alleyway in Vale, the place a shortcut between two streets in Vale. The shining metropolis of lit shop windows, street lights and the dazzling stars above her created a conflagration of light that momentarily stunned her after the darkness of the alley. She was leaning against a wall, rubbing her eyes as Mercury Black wandered out, the telltale click of his weaponised boots proof of his presence.

"Listen, when I asked you how far you'd trust the 'wick, you said 'as far as I could throw him'." Mercury chided, his voice cutting across the bustle of the town. "That doesn't tell me anything specific, Em."

Emerald opened her eyes just in time to see him flash a smirk that would have come off as 'cool' if Emerald hadn't known him for as long as she had. She turned away, back towards the alleyway.

The jerk.

"Going to pick something up. And quit calling me Em. People'll think we're together." Emerald shot back, before walking back the way she'd came. She walked for about five paces before she heard it.

Click-clack, click-clack.

So he was going to follow her again?

After what happened last time?

Well, he'd have to catch her first!

Emerald ripped out her weapons and fired downward, jumping onto the wall before beginning to run up it, reaching the roof of the stubby building before climbing onto it and racing away, hearing the sound of Mercury as he gave chase.


	8. Chapter 8

**And just like that, we've broken 7k on the views, and we're up there on nearly 70 followers! If I was gobsmacked before, now I'm just... I don't even know what to say! Thank you all so much for continuing your support! Man, if I went back three weeks and told myself that this story would be what it was today, my response would have been "Bro, you crazy." Seriously. Thank you all.**

 **Just gotta warn you guys, I won't be posting for a bit of time, just because I'm going to go back through the chapters of this book and sort out any errors in there, shift things around a little, but plot-wise nothing will change. It may well be a few days before I update again, but those of you following me will likely be the first to know when I next post. Don't worry guys, I'm not going to be waiting around for long.**

 **That's all from me. Now, on with the chapter!**

 ***Update* Going to start posting again at the first day of April, just taking a little break before we continue!**

* * *

Vade sat at his computer, the screen the only thing lighting up the dark, purple room. Even the morning sunlight did not enter through the curtains he had drawn. With shadows under the pure red eyes, Vade moved his mouse around the black laptop's screen, stopping occasionally to type something. He had a bored expression on his face, looking seemingly tired for one who'd just slept. One of the black books stood open, next to him, and he glanced at it occasionally before moving his eyes back to the screen.

"Screw you too, buddy. I got something you don't have. Don't be jelly." he muttered to himself. He flicked the scroll wheel of his mouse a couple of times, and his eyes darted left and right for a split second, before he let go of the mouse, gave the screen the finger, before grabbing the mouse again, and pressing resolutely onward with a sigh.

"And... yup, another one." Vade said, this one out loud. "Honestly, what a set of assholes. No wonder-"

The gold band on his wrist started flashing red and vibrating on his arm, interrupting what he'd been about to say. Vade checked its surface, and discovered that the one, thin light upon it was shining red. He stared into it, for a moment transfixed, before his neutral expression turned suddenly angry, his eyes reflecting sudden shock before conforming to their owner's anger.

"Oh, fuck." Vade exclaimed as he slapped a palm to his forehead. "Can't believe I forgot. Goddamn it!" He stood up immediately, kicking the abused chair back under the desk with a creak before striding around it and towards the door.

Once he reached it, he turned around and winked with his left eye, vanishing from the spot.

* * *

"Yang, stay calm."

"I'm just going to ask, okay Blake? I swear..."

"Yang, don't. Let them wake up, first."

"I want answers, alright? Just look at them!"

Weiss felt herself slowly stirring from her sleep. She opened her eyes in time to see someone in yellow standing above them. She rubbed her eyes, getting rid of the sleep, and looked again. Yang was staring at them, her eyes flashing between lilac and crimson. A breeze passed over her body, and she shivered. Yang did not look happy.

"Have a nice night, Weiss?" Yang asked, her eyes slipping into a full crimson while she asked, before fluctuating again.

"Yes, actually." Weiss indignantly retorted, then glanced over at Ruby.

Her heart felt like it leaped into her throat as she put two and two together.

The duvet was completely flat. Nothing was covering them. And one of her arms was under Ruby's shirt, currently cradling her back, while the other felt almost... sticky. There was a small pain in her groin. Their legs were entwined, and as Ruby slumbered, Weiss gulped audibly as the full reality of her bleak situation hit her. She'd just been caught in about the worst possible position for explaining their new relationship to Ruby's older sister.

Weiss immediately disentangled herself from Ruby and stood up, unconcerned about her current attire at the moment. She stood, and backed up even as Yang took a step closer towards her. This was definitely not good.

"So, got something to tell me?" the blonde growled, her voice low and tinged with fury. Heart pounding, Weiss tried her best to compose herself.

"I... I" she hesitated, trying to think of what to say. Then, two arms wrapped around her chest from behind, holding her in place. Blake peeked her head out from behind Yang just as she started to struggle, Weiss watching incredulously as the faunus grappled with their strongest team member.

"What are you doing?" Blake yelled at her. "Run!"

Weiss didn't need telling twice. She ran.

"Blake, NOT THE TIME!" Yang yelled.

With the sounds of a struggle behind her, Weiss flew out of the dorm.

* * *

Weiss did not stop until she stood outside the clock tower's courtyard, which was a fair distance from the dorms. She'd been so frightened by Yang, she'd even forgotten to take Myrtenaster with her, her scroll, anything at all.

She steadied her breathing as she thought. That was what father had said.

Think first, then act.

Yang was angry for a very reasonable reason. Ruby was still underage, and she was, from what Weiss had seen, the protective pseudo-mother of Ruby for a long time.

So when she found them there, like that...

It was never the best of positions.

And it left them open to every assumption under the moon.

"Found you." came a growl from behind her.

Weiss turned, heart leaping into her throat.

Sure enough, Yang stood there, gauntlets deployed, combat stance ready, flickering flames in her hair. If she was peeved before, now she was truly angry.

"Yang, it's not what it looked like." Weiss tried to explain. "We were already-"

Yang closed the gap swiftly, Weiss defenseless to her advance as she was roughly grabbed by the wrists and pinned against the wall. Rough stone grazed her bare skin as she stared into the glowering eyes of Yang, feeling pure fountains of icy fear running down her back, the face that gave smiles now playing host to a terrifying snarl. Burning heat was radiating off the brawler, searing her skin.

One of her wrists was released, and Weiss felt the smallest sliver of relief clash with her terror, though it was swiftly crushed when Yang drew back a fist, ready to strike her right in the face.

* * *

Behind the statue opposite the clock tower, Vade stood, crouched behind it, unseen by the pair.

"Son of a bitch." he cursed, before raising an arm, one of his black books appearing and spinning parallel to his arm, his eyes locked on the fist about to punch Weiss. Behind him, the other book fluttered low to the ground, just under the palm of his other hand.

That punch would not make contact.

Not if he had anything to say about it.

"YANG JUST PLEASE LET ME EXPLAIN!" Weiss cried out, her eyes wide with fear of such purity that Vade could have made a precious pearl of it.

The fist swung, and in the same moment, Vade cursed and lowered the book, preparing to spring at Ruby's sister himself, knowing the moment that fist hit, she'd be blown away by him. He prepared to wink, eyes already focused on his destination.

Right next to Yang, and his tome would take the hit directed at Weiss.

She might take a little, but nowhere near what the book would.

A loud crash of stone and rock answered, and he hesitated.

That fist hadn't impacted Weiss' face, as he'd previously thought it would.

Instead, he saw it against the wall, barely inches away from the heiress' visage.

Dumbstruck, Vade watched as the blonde pulled her fist back.

* * *

Weiss felt her heart pound as Yang lowered her arm. Her face hadn't changed, though her scream probably did more than she'd hoped for.

"Talk." Yang demanded, releasing her arm and turning away, allowing Weiss to rub her sore wrists and release a breath she never knew she was holding. There was a moment of silence while Weiss gathered her wits.

She would have to choose her words carefully here.

"Listen, Yang, I'm in love with your sister." Weiss confessed, breathing hard even now. "We've been together for just a day. We were going to tell you when you got back, but we didn't expect you to come back so... early."

Nothing.

Dead silence.

Yang didn't even turn around.

"We... we're comfortable with... sleeping together." Weiss pressed on, trying her best to keep her voice steady, a blush appearing on her face as the topic grew slightly more personal. "Ruby really enjoys hugging me, and we can both... move in our sleep." She neglected to mention her sleepwalking. "So that was most likely why you found us like that. But I promise you, I never do anything that she doesn't like."

"How many times have you gone further with her?" Yang asked, her voice calm, though Weiss' fear didn't dim. That kind of voice could mean many things.

"Once." Weiss answered. It really should have been twice, but that would have meant telling Yang about what happened two nights ago.

That would have been a bad idea.

"Are you really in love with her? If I went back right now and asked Ruby that, would she say yes?" Yang queried, turning around. Her expression was mixed, it still showed anger, but her eyes were fluctuating between purple and red. For the first time since being put in this situation, Weiss felt... hope?

"Yes, Yang, you would." Weiss replied, staring back with her strongest gaze. "I am in love with Ruby Rose, and I know she loves me as well. We confessed yesterday, and I would never break her heart. I can't."

There was a long silence. Yang was staring right into Weiss' own, eyes flickering minutely, as if checking for any lie in her eyes. Weiss held firm, crossing her arms and her legs, trying her best to look serious even though she was still in her Atlesian nightie.

Then, Yang broke her stare, and turned her head to the side, before she spoke.

* * *

"Then... I'm sorry."

Vade closed his mouth, which had been hanging open, unnoticed by him until just now. He sat against the statue and covered his weary, crimson eyes with a pale hand, still hidden from the two teammates.

Wow.

What he had just witnessed could only have been...

Wait, no.

That wasn't possible.

Was it?

He peeked out from behind the statue in time to see Weiss smirk before swiftly covering her mouth, something completely at odds with what he'd watched prior.

Goddamn.

Laying back, he ran his hands through his hair, thinking hard.

That outcome.

It was not the one he'd expected.

He checked his golden band. The light was now blue, flickering occasionally on and off.

"I'm not needed here." he said to himself. "Back to wack... work!"

Ah, he needed sleep.

Vade took one last look at the retreating figures of Weiss and Yang as they headed back to the dorm room, and then, with a wink, vanished.

* * *

Weiss and Yang stepped back through the door to team RWBY's dorm. The heiress was immediately ambushed by Ruby, who came flying from where she was on Weiss' bed, crashing into her and taking them both down with a shriek of surprise from Weiss, leaving her splayed on the floor of the corridor between dorm rooms.

"Weiss! Are you okay? Hurt anywhere? It's all good now! Right?" Ruby babbled at lighting speed, hugging Weiss tight all the while, casting Yang a fearful look, before her eyes fell upon Weiss' wrists, which were grazed, red and sore. "Weiss' hurt!"

"It's all good, Ruby." Yang said with a sigh. "And they're only grazes."

"You still have something to answer for." Blake shot from somewhere out of sight.

"What? I apologized on the way back!" Yang retorted, then a pause. "Oh. Sorry, Blake."

"I'm fine, Ruby." Weiss comforted, patting Ruby on the back as she held her close. Then, an idea sprang to mind. "Let's just say things got a little... fired up?"

It was still a pretty lame pun, but it was an attempt. She heard Ruby snort a little as she rolled off the prone heiress.

"Lame!" Yang yelled from inside the dorm, apparently either reading Weiss' mind, or just being lucky on the comment. Clearly the latter.

But Weiss didn't care. Her main objective had been achieved, and the reward was a sweet little smile on Ruby's face as she stood up and extended a hand, pulling Weiss up to her feet.

"Can we talk? Um, after you've gotten dressed, I mean!" Ruby asked, a small little blush appearing on her face.

What did she want to talk about?

"Sure." Weiss replied, stepping past her and back into the dorm room.

* * *

Within the confines of his shop, Vade continued his work on his black laptop.

Multiple books surrounded him now, swirling around his head like an angel's halo even as he worked. He continued to watch the screen, eyes darting back and forth.

"You know, I actually like you." Vade muttered. "At least you understand his intent."

He felt a soft hand on his back, and turned his head slowly, letting the books fall into a neat stack on the side of his desk.

A child, no older than seven, stood before him. Her pale skin reflected the light of the screen even as her silvery hair sparkled in the half light. She was dressed in a black t-shirt and a matching knee-length black skirt, with no shoes on. She was quite short for someone her age, only reaching Vade's shoulder while he was seated in the chair, and her fully navy eyes flickered as she watched him.

"You came back." She spoke, her voice soft and portraying tremendous fragility. Vade reached out and picked her up by the waist, using his leg to pull out a spare chair from under the desk, before seating her on it. "Was the tragedy stopped?"

"It was." Vade replied. "But not by me."

"Not... by you?" she asked, slowly raising a hand and scratching just above her left eye. "What do you mean? Weren't you supposed to?"

"I didn't have to." Vade replied with a small smile. "I let it play out the way it was supposed to. For some reason, I didn't even have to do anything."

"That's good." the girl replied with a smile. "What about the other one you were after?"

"Taken care of. She's another 'x' now." Vade replied. "How is our master?"

He watched as the girl's left eye flashed an electric blue, before she fell against the chair.

"He slumbers still." the girl responded, her voice slow and delicate, as if any gust of wind would tear her to shreds. "But there's times where he fidgets."

"I see." Vade whispered, turning back to the screen. "We're getting further."

"Father." the girl called out. Vade turned his head in time to see her with an imploring expression on her face, her slender arms outstretched, clearly waiting. He turned towards her and reached over, holding her tenderly as he lifted her out of the chair she was sitting on and sat her on his lap. She then twisted around and embraced him, her arms barely able to link together around him, laying her face on his chest. Her grip was feeble, weak.

"Aya. I love you." Vade whispered, as he embraced her in return with only one hand, the other stroking her silver hair, which passed down to the small of her back.

"Father, I'm scared." Aya whispered back. "Is it getting closer?"

"It is." Vade replied. "But this time, it won't happen. Both Master and I will make sure. Don't worry."

* * *

Weiss was waiting.

They were back in the same study area in the library, the same place where she'd confessed her love to Ruby, and had been accepted in turn before receiving her own confession. The memory was truly sweet now.

Weiss sat opposite Ruby, and watched as the younger girl fidgeted, a blush on her face. What was wrong?

Finally, Ruby looked up.

"Weiss, we were in that position because..." she took a moment to compose herself, face reddening. "You were sleepwalking again last night. And this time... I..."

Weiss spotted them. There were tears in Ruby's eyes. She didn't hesitate.

Just like Ruby had done, she rounded the table, kneeling down next to Ruby in her chair.

She reached over and wiped off the stray tear that ran down her face.

"What happened, Ruby? Tell me. Please." Weiss implored. It couldn't have been good, if Ruby was crying.

"You... I didn't... Weiss, I'm sorry!" Ruby cried out, before turning away.

Weiss embraced Ruby from behind, stopping her from moving, letting the younger girl expend all of her tears. As she did so, a nagging pain suddenly emerged from her lower regions. She felt it, a sharp sting momentarily emerged before dying down.

She slowly turned Ruby to face her. Her eyes were a little bloodshot, little red zig-zags that showed her sadness in all its purity. Several streams of tears, their emotional origins still a mystery, ran down her little face.

"I hurt you. Down there." Ruby confessed, unable to meet Weiss' eyes.


	9. Chapter 9

**And we are back with the ninth chapter! Thank you guys for bearing with me while I sorted some things out on my end. You guys broke seventy followers, fifty favorites, and are nearly breaking nine thousand on the view count! Damn. I... I don't even have any words now, except "Thank you guys, so much."**

 **We're moving onward from here, and things are starting to move once again.**

 **Let's get to it!**

* * *

Aya pulled back gently, breaking her embrace. Vade met her eyes and gave her a warm smile. She returned with a smile of her own, her navy eyes wavering as they stared into his own two pits of crimson. It was like looking at a guardian spirit, with himself as the mortal it was bound to.

"Father... when we change... it, will we be... safe?" Aya asked, her voice betraying her nervousness.

"The Master will look after us." Vade responded, keeping a soothing voice he knew most would assume impossible from someone like him. "You and I, we're a team. And you know what I always say?"

"The ink of fate... dances across... our pages... writing our wins... spelling our success... and dictating our... demise. I remember... Father." Aya replied. "Will you... tell me what... it means when... we win?"

"Yes, I will." Vade reassured. "I promise."

Suddenly, Aya fell backwards, jolting as her left eye started glowing blue. Vade lunged instantly, catching the frail child and holding her steady as her head lolled back. He could feel heat start to pour out of her, her sweaty skin strangely cold as her mouth hung open, head hanging limply until Vade lifted it up with his other hand. He propped her on his arm, keeping her steady with the other, letting her legs dangle over the other side.

"What are you seeing?" Vade asked quietly, watching as Aya's expression grew steadily more pained. His heart raced, but he forced his parental instincts down. The Master's gift would never harm her. He knew that more than anyone.

"The master... he's... he's got something... for you." Aya whispered, seemingly up at something above them, though Vade knew she was talking to him. "I feel it... but it's for... just you this... time."

A vision? For him?

This had happened once before. Master had had something just for him, in the form of a vision. What he'd seen... was not something for Aya's eyes. No seven year old should ever be subjected to that kind of thing. It was harrowing enough for himself as it was.

"He's waiting..." the navy-eyed girl said, pointedly. Vade smiled at her, and she gave a tiny smile of her own in reply.

He felt the familiar sense of air rushing around him, though it was still in reality. A touch, not on the back of his head, but rather touching his very skull. He laid back, letting Aya fall against his chest as his consciousness slipped, slowly yet dreamily into the arms of his Master. Weightlessness took his body, lifting his mental self up and into the void.

Then, light flashed before his eyes, and dimmed, revealing a nighttime setting.

* * *

Ruby relaxed into Weiss' sleeping form, letting her cuddling arms slowly soothe her into sleep.

Her eyes were shut, and her breathing was steady. She could feel the steady rush of air on the arm that Weiss' head was on now, the other around the heiress' waist, their legs intertwined. The floor itself would have been uncomfortable, but with Weiss' fluffy duvet between them and the hard carpet, Ruby found comfort in the makeshift bed.

How funny.

Ruby stifled a soft laugh, which gave way to a yawn.

Two nights ago, probably somewhere close to now, Weiss and her had just been friends. Now, Ruby reckoned that they were much more than that. Definitely much more. But the biggest surprise had definitely been how Weiss was now. Before, when they'd talked, she'd been way different to how she was now. And it was a shocker just how... gentle she could be.

Like mom.

Ruby tightened the embrace as she continued to think.

To her, Weiss was someone just as precious now.

What was it that Yang called it? Idea... no, I... I...

Oh! Ironic! That was it!

It was so ironic. When they'd first met, Ruby would have probably clubbed the person who said they'd be lovers around the head with her beloved Rose. Weiss had definitely been mean back then, aaannnd when she sneezed and exploded, yeah, maybe she might have deserved it. But... well... now it was different.

Weiss shifted in her sleep, moving her head off Ruby's arm and onto the pillow beside it. Her own arms, which were around her own chest, shifted ever so slightly, Ruby feeling her every motion, the cool touch of her skin as she fidgeted in her sleep.

It felt so right, it was unbelievable.

It was almost weird.

Almost.

"Ruby..." came a whisper. The softness of the voice sent a shiver down Ruby's back as she opened her eyes, turning to see Weiss in precisely the same position as she'd been in before. She propped herself up on an arm, letting go of the heiress as she peered at her lover's face.

Her eyes were shut.

Weiss was definitely asleep.

Had she imagined it?

Then, she saw it.

Weiss' lips moved.

"Ruby..." Weiss whispered, outstretching her arms and wrapping them around Ruby.

Was she sleep talking again?

"Weiss?" Ruby called quietly.

There was a moment of silence, and for a second after, Ruby seriously thought that she imagined that movement, the sound. Weiss did shift in her sleep naturally. This didn't have to be a sleeping epi-

Ruby's breath caught in her throat as Weiss turned her head upwards, her eyes still gently closed. But if her eyes were open, she would have been looking at Ruby for sure, no two ways about it. Again? Was Weiss sleepwalking again?

"You're... so warm..." Weiss mumbled, laying her head against the younger girl's chest. "I don't ever want to let you go."

Wow. What did you even say to that?

"Th-thank you, Weiss." Ruby quietly replied. "I won't ever leave you. We'll be together."

"Forever?" Weiss asked.

"Forever." Ruby responded, without thinking. They would be, right?

"That... makes me so happy." Weiss simpered. "I love you, Ruby."

Was it wrong that Ruby almost preferred this side of Weiss? This soft-spoken, cute, adorable Weiss, who looked and felt so much softer compared to the cool edge that Weiss had normally? That wasn't to say that Ruby disliked that part of her, but it was nice to see her inner self, without any of the defenses she normally put up around herself. It would be something only she would see.

Just for her.

"I can hear your heart beating." Weiss whispered, slowly slipping a hand underneath her head and Ruby's pyjama top, causing the crimsonette to shudder a little at the chill. "Is it me?" It was her. Ruby knew that her heart was racing right now.

Just by being this close to Weiss. It felt almost impossible to take it for granted.

Because it was so special.

Because it was so... just...

Ruby didn't even have the words.

She squeaked as the hand under her shirt moved to her breasts, and Weiss turned her attention to Ruby's hardening nipples, her other hand joining the first under the fabric that covered Ruby, forcing out a little whine from the younger girl.

Again? Was it going to happen again?

Weiss shifted, her head leaving Ruby's chest, moving until she was completely buried under the duvet, the only thing Ruby felt being the ministrations of the hands currently playing with her breasts, teasing her nipples, the occasional pinch accompanied by a sharp breath by Ruby.

Was she going to... let Weiss do it again?

"I can feel it." the sleeping heiress muttered from under the covers. "You're hot again, aren't you?"

She'd be lying if she said she wasn't. Ruby wasn't even sure what it was. She felt her need... down there, again. Whenever Weiss played with her... whenever she was just near Weiss... it would start up again. Again and again, this want for... it. It was so strong!

"I can smell it." Ruby heard from below, as the hands around her mounds left, migrating slowly down her body, until they met the waistline of her trouser bottoms. With no resistance, she felt her bottoms slide off her legs. "I can hear it." Ruby felt lips on her inner thigh, leaving a trail of kisses moving upward, towards her flower. Just before they reached her flower, Weiss ceased teasingly, and repeated it with Ruby's other leg, the heiress' hands caressing her muscles. "I can tell."

It felt good.

Then, Ruby felt a kiss right on the petals of her flower. She bucked a little, the motions completely unexpected.

"I can taste it." Weiss whispered.

Wait.

She was going to-

Ah!

Weiss had pressed her lips to Ruby's entrance. Her tongue darted out from her mouth, dancing across Ruby's walls like an ice skater on a rink, while her hands held Ruby's legs at bay when she tried to close them, the level of strength Weiss held in her sleep startling the younger girl as much as the sensation of being touched like this. It tickled, but at the same time, it felt good.

Small groans of pleasure were emanating from Ruby now, as she laid there, eyes unfocused, purely concentrating on her lover's tongue.

Weiss moaned into Ruby's slit, the vibrations causing the girl to shudder. She could hear it again, and looked down at Weiss, only seeing her slim behind and the top of her head. A hand was back there, and it didn't take much guesswork to realize what Weiss was doing. She threw her head back as Weiss found her sensitive spot, pressing herself into Weiss face, trying to convey through her moans as to how good it was feeling.

"K-keep doing that, Weiss, I- ah!" Ruby moaned, feeling Weiss speed up her tongue's dance upon her entrance. She was rocking now, almost like she was impaled on Weiss tongue, riding it like she would a dick. Weiss' pleasure sounds were now coursing through her body, and at each peak, Ruby would feel... it coming.

Not far now.

"Weiss... I-I'm close!" Ruby stumbled over her words in her pleasure addled state. She looked down at her lover just in time to see her own hand speed up in response, the ferocity of her assault on Ruby's sex increasing all the while. All the wetness in Ruby's body felt like it was rushing towards a single spot, closer, closer, until-

She came, her nectar spraying right into Weiss' mouth, Ruby pushing as much out of her as she could, determined to show Weiss how good it was. Again and again she spasmed, jetting it right into Weiss' throat, until at last, she stopped, and Weiss pulled away, coughing lightly, though she was licking her lips.

"So sweet... Just like you." Weiss murmured, before letting out a gasp. Ruby slowly turned herself around, in time to see that she was still working her own petals with her hand, the act now visible to her as Weiss was kneeling. Ruby slowly got to her knees, a plan in mind.

She pushed Weiss over, the heiress gasping in surprise as Ruby pulled her hand away, and then inserted her own finger.

She would finish her lover off.

Ruby pumped her hand in and out, just as aggressively as Weiss had been licking her. The cute little 'ah!' from Weiss as she hit that spot, her groans of pleasure, all of it was music to Ruby's ears. She was pistoning so hard, she was hitting a wall inside of the heiress, but the slicked tunnel did nothing to stop her advances, rather it felt like Weiss' body was trying to drive her deeper.

Then Weiss came, the sticky stuff she shot out covering Ruby's hand. The crimsonette pushed her hand into the deepest part, letting Weiss ride out her orgasm, before curling her finger and quickly pulling it out.

There was a tugging feeling.

Then Weiss hissed in-between moans as Ruby withdrew her hand.

What was that hiss that Weiss just did? Was it good?

She looked down at the finger Weiss had covered with her sticky juices.

There was spatters of red here and there, but it was...

It was...

Blood.

* * *

As the vision faded, Vade felt his consciousness slowly slip back into his body. His daughter's eyes lit up when she noticed him start to move, and watched as he shook himself a little, getting the blood pumping once more through his body. The light of his eye that he could see reflected in Aya's gradually died down, until it no longer lit her face. She sat, cross-legged, on his lap, awaiting his awakening.

Wow.

Just... wow.

"Father?" Aya called out. "Are you... okay?"

"I'm fine." Vade replied, patting her on the head. She smiled and closed her eyes, bowing her head forward, wanting more. Instead, Vade pulled her into another hug, which she happily snuggled into. Her silver haired head rested on his chest as she wrapped her arms and legs around him, tender as only his own daughter would have been in her love. She wiggled a little to get in a better position, the motions shifting...

"Please don't wiggle like that." Vade requested softly.

"Why?" Aya asked, ceasing her motions.

"It's dangerous." Vade simply replied. Aya, trusting his word, did not do it again, but rather remained there, simply enjoying his love.

"What... now?" Aya asked.

Vade thought about it. Clearly, Master was unhappy about the current state of events, though whether or not that particular occurrence was due to his own meddling, that of his master, or simply a natural course of events following Ruby and Weiss' pairing, remained to be seen. Though, he'd already put strain on that last by his appearance, though that had been necessary.

What now, though?

"We wait." Vade replied. "We keep an eye out. We play with things only if things get really bad, or if they come to us. That's what we'll do. Which means..." he watched his daughter look up and tilt her head in confusion, just like he did sometimes, "we get to have some fun time." Her expression lit up, giving him the wide smile of happiness he knew any parent sought. She let go of him. "So, what do you want to do? We need to stay here for a couple of hours, but after that, we can go outside if you want."

"I have... an idea..." Aya responded. "Why don't... you and I... visit the park... again?"

"That could work." Vade agreed.

"It's a beautiful day outside." Aya said, tilting her head, and Vade knew what she wanted to hear.

"Birds are singing, flowers are blooming."

"On days like this..."

"People like us..."

"Should be having fun." Vade and Aya recited together, giving each other a light-hearted smile.


	10. Chapter 10

**Alright, I updated this chapter. Writer's block still sucks, but I'm a bit better now. Not much changed, just added bits and pieces and made sure grammar wasn't an issue. Hope you guys enjoy!**

* * *

"Oh, Ruby." Weiss consoled a still tearful Ruby, who held her close, burying her face in the heiress' chest. She'd just gone through the embarrassing process of hearing what had happened during the night, when she sleepwalked. Or, a better way of saying it would have been when she made love to her in her sleep.

Even though she'd done it before, it was still hard. Especially when Ruby clammed up at the last part, when blood... exited her body.

It was odd. Weiss knew that she sleepwalked from time to time, but they were always meant to be isolated cases. Twice was a pattern. Normally, Weiss would have attributed it to a recurring dream, but it was odd. No dream ever depicted her making love to Ruby as she claimed. But Weiss knew better than to disbelieve her lover. She would never lie about something like that.

"Does it hurt?" Ruby asked. Rather than reply, Weiss twisted her body a little, holding back a wince as the pain shot up again from her lower regions, like a spark which spread outwards before dissipating. Truthfully, she still didn't know what had happened. All Ruby had described was her bloody hand, and the unknown factor did send a cold trickle of fear down her back. Yet she remained steadfast, if not for herself then for Ruby.

She needed to be strong for her.

"A bit." Weiss admitted.

"Is it... y'know..." Ruby grew quiet, her face blushing. "Once a month?"

Was this how Ruby was when discussing anything about their private parts? It was irritating to the more logical part of Weiss, the part that wanted to get to the bottom of this. A bigger part found her just plain cute, and also found it impossible to be angry at such a childish innocence. It was just another thing about Ruby that charmed her.

"No." Weiss replied, knowing that, by her words, she meant Weiss' period. "That happened ten days ago." She felt herself blush at the sudden realization of what she'd just admitted, but it flowed back out of her face as Weiss put it aside. She trusted Ruby like she was family. It'd be fine. "Maybe you just scratched me when you..." she trailed off. She knew Ruby would get what she meant, and the little blush she saw erupt on the parts of Ruby's face not currently hidden confirmed it.

One thing was for sure.

If her sleepwalking was doing this and making Ruby so afraid, then it would have to stop. No questions there. It wasn't just that Weiss wasn't even sure what had happened to her, and might need time to heal, but also the fact that so far, it sounded like Ruby didn't want to to those kinds of things with her while she was asleep. Granted, Weiss had no memory of what had transpired, but it sounded as if she'd forced herself on her lover.

That was inexcusable.

"Well, I think it's time we stopped these things." Weiss said, derisively. Ruby's eyes widened a little, and it was soon after that Weiss realized how she might have interpreted that statement. "I mean the sleepwalking thing." she reassured quickly, expecting to see a change for the better in Ruby's expression. "I don't want to hurt or scare you when it happens, so please, wake me up when I start doing it."

There was no change in Ruby's expression, and a resurgence of a blush on her face told Weiss there was more to this than she first thought. Was Ruby hiding something?

"Ruby, if there's anything else that you haven't told me, please tell me if there's anything that's bothering you. Please." Weiss implored, now feeling slightly desperate, and also a little down. Ruby still didn't want to confide everything in her, granted, maybe there was a reason, but she wanted that trust. She needed that trust. It was something she hadn't felt since...

"Weiss... please don't make me say it." Ruby replied, her eyes reminding her of Zwei when he'd been caught doing something naughty. "It might be bad."

It might be bad? What did she mean?

"Why might it be bad?" Weiss asked, deciding to use the younger girl's words. Maybe it would make things easier for her. "I won't get angry at you if you tell me. Promise." Ruby looked down into the heiress' lap, her gaze staying there for a moment, before she looked back up at Weiss, her eyes showing a more purposeful look, the very sight causing Weiss' heartbeat to quicken. She must have made up her mind about something.

"I actually... like it when you sleepwalk." Ruby replied quietly.

She enjoyed those kinds of things? What was it about them that she liked? Was it just the... things they did, or something else?

"What do you enjoy about it?" Weiss asked. "The things we do? You know I want to be awake when we do them."

"No!" Ruby responded startlingly, the volume of her voice making Weiss jump. "Sorry." she continued in a quieter voice, as Weiss rounded on her. "It's not for... that, it's because of the way you are."

The way she was?

What did Ruby mean?

Did she do something differently when she was asleep?

What was it?

"The way I was?" Weiss repeated.

"Look, there isn't any other way for me to say this, so I'll just say it. Please don't get mad at me." Ruby said, her voice hardening as she spoke, revealing her determination to get her point across. "When you're awake, you're you, the person I love, the person that I know, and you act the way I know you act." Was she really that predictable, or was that just Ruby's way of saying 'the normal way that she was'? "But when you're sleeping, you're... different."

Different?

"I mean," Ruby's face flooded with colour, "a lot of things change about you. You speak differently, a lot more soft. You tell me that you love me, and you're a lot more... gentle when you're asleep. It's harder for me to be embarrassed as well while you're sleepwalking, even if I can't be, well, choosy about what we do. I also think you're a lot more, well, just able to talk to me a lot more about your feelings."

So that was why she reacted that way. Ruby didn't lie before, a part of her was hurt after hearing that Ruby almost preferred the way she was while she was sleeping. She could hear Ruby babbling about how it wasn't like she didn't like her as she was now, but Weiss tuned it out. Maybe Ruby was just the kind of person that wanted a gentler touch. In fact, now that she was thinking about it, Weiss felt herself mentally face palm.

She should have seen it coming.

Well... her lover wanted something more gentle.

And maybe she could provide that.

"Listen, Ruby." Weiss said, cutting her off. "I still don't want to sleepwalk. But," Weiss quickly carried on as Ruby's face fell a little, "that doesn't mean I can't change for you." As her lover looked up with a hopeful expression, Weiss felt her heart flutter at the sight even as she locked eyes with her. "Let's make a deal." She held out a hand. "If you promise me that from now on, if I sleepwalk and try to do stuff with you, you'll wake me up, then I'll promise to try and be... well, like I am when I'm sleepwalking, when we're alone together."

As Weiss finished her proposal, she took her eyes off Ruby for a split second.

She felt her hand clasp her own in that split second.

She turned back to see Ruby with a smile on her face, the sight glorious to Weiss, as if she'd just fought a nevermore just to see it.

"Deal." the crimsonette responded. It was a little frightening how quickly she'd agreed, but Weiss put it out of her mind. "Um, are you going to see someone? For, y'know." She pointed down at Weiss lower regions.

"No." Weiss replied. She wasn't going to go to the medical facilities for a simple scratch down below. Ruby puffed out her cheeks, clearly serious about the matter.

"Weiss, it might be serious." she moaned.

"What could be serious about a scratch?" Weiss queried, feeling a small jolt of pain as she did so. "Ruby, my aura will be healing it." The crimsonette still looked worried.

'Weiss, if your aura was healing it right, it would be fixed right now." Ruby whined. "C'mon, we should."

"I can't. I'm sorry, Ruby." Weiss said, checking her scroll and standing up. "And I need to go."

"Why?" Ruby asked. Wow. Did she really not remember?

"There's something important on today." Weiss explained, deciding that it would be better to help Ruby remember. "It's something I'm involved in, and what you'll be watching." Ruby's expression was blank. "It's for our team, and you were with me the last time it happened." Still nothing, and Weiss bit down her annoyance. "It's up in the sky."

A flash of recognition in Ruby's eyes. Thank goodness.

"The tournament!" Ruby shouted out. "You and Yang! Oh gosh!"

Before Weiss could even react, Ruby had shot up, and ignoring Weiss' attempts to stop her, gathered the heiress up in her hands, giving the heiress only a second to prepare herself before she triggered her Semblance.

Afterwards, all Weiss saw was a blur.

All she felt were the arms around her.

The arms of her ditzy, dolt of a lover.

* * *

As Ruby waved goodbye to Weiss, watching her go into the arena with all the words of encouragement she could muster, inside she felt scared. Aside from being a bit off balance with how quickly she'd been taken to the arena, and the words she'd said on the way, not to mention when Ruby had dropped her off and she'd nearly run into a tree from being dizzy, there was one thing bothering her.

She hadn't liked that Weiss had brushed it off her worries.

People were never meant to bleed down there except for their... once a month.

Sparing her surroundings a quick glance, Ruby took off, heading for the exit.

Blake and the rest of her friends would all be there to watch for her, and this was far more important.

She needed information.

Who?

Who could help her?

And then it clicked.

Ruby knew who she'd need to see.

* * *

Ruby stared, horror-struck.

At a single word.

She'd never thought a single word would make her feel so scared.

That one word?

Closed.

And where was it?

On a sign outside of the Dark Library.

Ruby leaned on the shop's curtained window as she thought, hard.

How to get in contact with him?

He hadn't given her his scroll number, was there a way to-

Ah! The Duel App!

She quickly withdrew her scroll and checked her recent match. The app informed her that her Rank had dropped by two thanks to her loss, but that didn't matter right now. She found Vade's profile, and that red question mark next to his blue-eyed profile picture.

Thank goodness.

There was a scroll number just below.

Ruby switched to her phone app, and dialed his number, before holding it up to her face and waiting.

 _Ring, ring._

C'mon, pick up!

 _Ring, ring._

Don't do this!

 _Ring, ring._

Please, Vade!

A click, then Vade's face appeared on her screen. Aside from his now blue contacts, he looked exactly as he had before.

"Ruby!" he greeted, his voice distorted a little on the scroll, but the recognition was plain to her ears. "What do I owe the pleasure to?"

"Um..." Ruby replied, truthfully having no idea what he just asked. On the screen, Vade rolled his eyes.

"What are you calling me for?" Vade asked after a sigh. That was better.

"I need your advice on something." Ruby replied. "You said you knew a lot, so..."

"I don't normally work outside of my shop." Vade said with a grin. "But for you, I can make an exception. Come to Park Dionysus. You know where that is, right?"

Yup. She knew.


	11. Chapter 11

**Alright, was a little bit late on this one, really wanted to make it good after that gong show that was the last chapter. The next time I upload will be after I've edited the previous chapter and made it better. Writer's block is gone now thankfully, with any luck I won't have to do this again, and for that guest who asked for a smut warning, I've updated the warning at the first chapter.**

 **You guys continue to amaze me by the way. We're at 11k views and nearly 80 followers! Man, I have never seen so much popularity from only a month! Thank you all so much! This is entirely new for me as I was a bit of a lone wolf when I was growing up.**

 **Okay, enough gushing, let's get on with the main event!**

 ***Update: I went ahead and edited this chapter, thank you to both Crazeblaze and the guest below his latest review for pointing out the flaw in this chapter. Good thing I watch the reviews or I might not have noticed. Thank you both.**

 ***Update 2: The chapters are unfortunately going to start slowing down, university tests are coming up and more and more of my story-writing time is instead being devoted to studying for these tests. It's unavoidable guys, I'm sorry, but I'll try to keep up one chapter a week. I'll let you guys know as soon as I can start going at my usual speed again.**

* * *

As Ruby reached the park, she scanned the area, looking for Vade.

The area itself was nothing special. A fountain in the center, a paved path crisscrossing the freshly cut grass, and a set of trees that provided shade from the afternoon sun. It was an area that was very, very traditional, one of the last places in Remnant that had their pieces of history within its boundaries, the rest of it stored in data vaults many times larger than the average house.

She finally spotted him. Vade sat at the base of a large tree to her right. In his lap was... a small girl? Ruby rubbed her eyes, to make sure she wasn't seeing things, and looked again. It was too! The silver haired girl sat in his lap, leaning against his chest, currently pointing up at something in the sky, green eyes flickering between things she was looking at.

As she watched, Vade reached down, and took her hand before using its point to draw something in the air upon a canvas Ruby couldn't see. She laughed, and lowered her hand slowly once the older man released it.

Feeling that now was the time to say hi, Ruby walked towards them. She got roughly halfway to the before Vade looked up and spotted her. The girl had started reaching for something in the grass to Ruby's right.

"Hello, Ruby." Vade greeted, causing the girl to look up and smile at her.

"Hi." Ruby replied, seating herself opposite him. "Who's this?" she asked, gesturing at the girl in his lap. Vade made eye contact with the girl as she looked up, then returned to Ruby.

"This is my daughter, Aya." Vade replied. "Aya, this is the girl I was talking about before."

"Nice... to meet... you." Aya responded in a quiet voice, reaching out a hand slowly. Ruby took it, shaking the small yet extremely soft hand, before Aya retracted it and rested herself once more on her father.

"So, what would you like to know?" Vade asked. Aya jolted at his words, before focusing hard on Ruby, until Vade patted her on her head. "She wouldn't have come here if she didn't want to know something, Aya." Their expressions of quiet expectation were eerily similar.

Um.

Ruby was pretty sure what she was about to talk about would not be suitable for Aya.

"How old is Aya?" Ruby asked, tilting her head, trying to convey meaning to Vade. His head tilted in response, though his expression didn't change. Did he get her meaning? Aya looked confused.

"Seven." she replied, before giving a smile that was very reminiscent of her father. Very... sinister. "Why is... that important?" Sudden realization flashed in Vade's eyes, and he nodded seriously to Ruby.

"Aya?" Vade called, his daughter leaning back in his lap and looking up at him. "See those dark green leaves on that tree?" Ruby followed his point to a tree on the other side of the park, one with distinctive dark leaves, as Vade had described. "Could you bring one of them to Ruby?"

"As... you wish... Father." Aya responded with a smile, before lightly sliding off her father and standing up, before walking towards the tree, a light skip in her step. Vade, after watching her go, turned his gaze back on Ruby.

"She's adorable." Ruby commented honestly. If it wasn't for Vade being there and how soft she looked, she would have cuddled the cute little thing right there and then. Her father chuckled.

"Completely different from me, wouldn't you say?" Vade replied. "So what did you come to ask me? After what I told you, you probably have something... private in mind." He tilted his head again, but thankfully, he didn't have his scary grin on. Thank goodness.

"Well, um, Weiss is hurting." Ruby began. "She's hurting because of... what I did last night. We did... it." Ruby explained. Vade nodded, indicating he understood. "Then she was bleeding a little. Now she's sore... down there, and we don't know why. Weiss doesn't want to go to the doctors, so I didn't really know what to do. That's why... I'm here. She's fighting in the tournament right now, but I bet she'll be sore after the fight."

Vade didn't comment for another, his eyes leaving Ruby's for a moment while he thought.

"Well, it sounds like a delicate issue." Vade replied. "Why is Weiss reluctant to go to the doctors?"

"Don't know. She won't listen to me." Ruby replied honestly. Why she didn't immediately go, Ruby just couldn't understand. That was what Yang had said, if she felt any pain where there shouldn't be, get help, right?

"Here's a question that I like to ask everyone." Vade said, his voice quietening a little. "How do you think I can help you?"

"I don't know, talk to her maybe?" Ruby asked, getting a bit annoyed. Why was he asking these things?

"Let me play my cards straight." Vade said, slapping a hand down on his knee as he crossed his legs, sitting up a little straighter. "I can help you, for no charge as I'm not working." Thank goodness. "I can't help you, but I know someone that can. She'll come with her own costs, which you might have to pay, but aside from that, we'll be good. Here's what I want you to do."

He beckoned for Ruby to come closer, and she did so, knowing that she was on to something now.

"Once Weiss and the rest of your team are asleep, wave at the window. It doesn't matter where you are, I'll see it." Vade explained. "My contact and I will appear in the center of your room, and do our work. We just need to check her out, that's all." A sinister grin flashed across his face for a split second.

"Check her out?" Ruby asked, apprehensively. "What do you mean?" She did NOT like that smile.

"We just need to get close. Why, what did you think I meant?" Vade asked, a smile on his face, his eyes narrowed.

"Never mind." Ruby said, deciding not to speak her mind. Vade, however, read it. Either that or he was a good guesser.

"Ruby, if I wanted to bend her over and give her my love, I would have done it the first time I met her, and there aren't many in this world who could have stopped me." Vade growled, his voice taking on a menace that compounded the fear Ruby'd been feeling earlier. "We need trust here, if this is going to work Ruby. All I'm going to do is stand by and make sure nothing goes wrong with this. Now are you in, or are you out?"

Give her his love? Did that mean what Ruby thought it meant?

She bit back her retort. Vade was the only one who was going to help her. His anger frightened Ruby, but a bigger part of her really wanted any help she could get with Weiss. Her stubbornness to get help for something like this really sucked, and anything Ruby could do, even if she had to put up with Vade, was worth the risk.

Yeah.

It was worth the risk.

There was just one thing she was going to do first.

"Sure. Sorry, Vade." Ruby replied, deciding to apologize in order to get back on his good side. It worked, as he visibly relaxed, and his snarl became a small grin once more. "Can you do me a favor though?"

"What's that?" Vade asked.

"No offense, but you're kinda... weirding me out with that smile of yours. And that thing you said about Weiss, kinda makes it hard to trust you. So, can you please stop? Please?" Ruby requested, honestly.

Vade's eyes hardened dangerously for a moment, his smile widening, and Ruby could have sworn there was a momentary red glow under his right eye's contact lens, before it subsided, and his grin shrunk into an 'almost' normal smile.

"Is that better?" Vade asked. It was.

"Yeah." Ruby replied.

"I'm also..." he paused, giving a sigh. "I'm sorry about what I said about Weiss as well. That was out of order." he admitted. "I put a lot in trust... you follow what set me off?"

"Yeah." Ruby repeated. "By the way, who's this other person?"

A tap on Ruby's back answered her. She slid around to see Aya standing there, holding the dark green leaf up to her, a cute smile on her face.

The green contact on her left eye had slipped a little, revealing part of a pure navy eye.

Just like Vade.

* * *

Weiss rested her arm on the door to her dorm. It was early evening, and she felt _tired_.

That fight against FNKI had been the toughest one yet. Possibly the most frightening. That faunus fighter, Flint Coal. She was no stranger to faunus blaming her for her father's actions, but it didn't make it any easier when one decided to target her as a way to take their revenge against him. At least she had made it unscathed.

And it was over. Now, only the one-on-one matches remained.

They'd decide who went up later. Right now, she needed sleep, bad.

And Ruby.

Where had she been? Weiss had glanced up at the stands occasionally, trying to locate her. Blake had been there, so had JNPR, their friends. But no Ruby. Why? On top of that, she hadn't seen the crimsonette on her way back, even turned down the victory party to Junior's bar to possibly see her lover.

But she wasn't here. Weiss sighed, walking over to her bed, drained, and sat upon it.

She landed on something... hard. And crinkly. Weiss reached under her rear and pulled out a scrap of paper.

'Weiss' it read. Was this from Ruby?

It had better be an explanation.

She turned it over, reading the message aloud, the scrawl surprisingly legible.

"Weiss, I'm really, really sorry I couldn't stay for the match. I wanted to, but there was something I needed to do. Something personal. I can't really tell you right now, but I can when it's just us. Hope you won the match! If I'm not there by the time you read this, don't worry. I should be back by tonight at the latest. Love you, Ruby."

There was a little smiley face next to the message, and Weiss smiled a little at the childish mark.

So she hadn't been there. It hadn't been just her imagination. But still. What could have been so important that she'd miss the match? Miss Weiss doing her best for her? It had to have been significant, else Ruby wouldn't have gone. It didn't ease the soreness in her chest, but it did give the logical part of her something to gnaw on.

She slid under the covers of her bed, not bothering with the nightie for tonight, holding the note close to her chest as if Ruby was there, in her arms.

She'd earned this rest, even if it did come with a pinch of salt.

* * *

The door opened again.

The hooded figure crept silently across the dorm room, letting the door close with only the faintest 'click', stopping to look at the sleeping forms of Weiss, Blake, and Yang. It twitched at the last, the smell of alcohol wafting off the blonde, her mouth pumping the fumes into the open air surrounding her. It gazed around for one final time, before stepping up to the window, and waving at it.

Ruby pulled back her hood and turned just in time to see Vade materialize out of thin air, Aya holding onto his back, eye glowing. She raised her two feeble arms, and stretched them towards Blake and Yang. Blue, powdery aura flowed from her fingertips, surrounding the pair, and as Ruby watched, their breathing slowed, their legs and arms slowly dipping under the covers as the muscles within them relaxed. Ruby knew what that power did. Aya's semblance, as Vade had told her, revolved around dreaming. She could send someone into such a deep sleep that they wouldn't wake up even when they were hurt.

"Weiss is a deep sleeper, right?" Vade whispered, his glowing right eye illuminating his face, giving it a paint of luminescent crimson as Aya finished her task and patted Vade on the back. "Nice job, Aya."

"I think so?" Ruby replied uncertainly. She'd only known Weiss' sleep to be deep when she'd been sleepwalking. Actually, come to think of it... "Vade, Weiss sleepwalks sometimes." she warned quietly. "What do we do if she starts sleepwalking?"

Rather than being surprised, as Ruby had expected Vade to be, he didn't seem to react that much. Neither did Aya. They both held the same small smile, not creepy ones as Ruby had seen them do.

"She won't." Vade responded, advancing on the sleeping and utterly helpless Weiss.

"How do you know?" Ruby asked, watching apprehensively as Vade reached the heiress' bedside, Aya leaning over his shoulder, clamped onto his back. He gazed back at her.

"I know." he replied, before turning back to his target. Ruby stood by as Aya slipped from her perch on Vade's back and landed lightly on the carpet. They then made eye contact, giving Ruby a view of both of their glowing eyes. Aya nodded. Vade nodded in turn, then reached over to the foot of the duvet and started to slowly roll up the duvet. Weiss' expression twitched, and Ruby felt her heart start to race. What were they doing?

"Wait, I thought you said you were just going to stand by?" Ruby whispered anxiously, as Weiss' legs were revealed. "Why are you taking off the duvet covers?" A little tap on her arm, and she turned her eyes upon Aya, who beckoned with a finger for her to get closer. She crouched before Vade's daughter, so that they were eye to eye.

"It's my... power that... let's us see... inside her." Aya explained breathily, her voice barely audible even though Ruby was inches away from the little girl. "I can... use a light... to see through... her skin and pyjamas. Then... I use another... power to send... what I see... to my father." She panted at the end of the sentence, and Ruby reached out to pick up the small figure. Aya attempted to bat her hand away, though there was no strength behind it. "No need... I just... can't talk for... too long."

She took several deep breaths as Vade skillfully removed the duvet cover, putting it carefully on the floor. Aya flashed her eye warningly at Vade when Weiss shifted in her sleep, rolling onto her side. She was clutching a piece of paper to her chest.

Her note.

Ruby felt a surge of guilt. Weiss would have been looking for her.

She'd have to explain a lot the next time she spoke to Weiss.

She was still dressed in the combat skirt she was still wearing, her skin illuminated by the moonlight flowing in through the windows. With a nod from Vade, Aya climbed back up onto his back, and positioned herself so that she had a clear view of the body before her. Then, Vade beckoned Ruby closer with a finger, mirroring Aya in his motions. As Ruby did so, Aya's eye shone a light onto Weiss body, illuminating a patch of her skirt near her nether regions.

"What is she doing?" Ruby asked.

"Nothing to worry about." Vade replied quietly. "Calm down. This is like an X-Ray. Come here." He grasped Ruby's shoulder and pulled her next to him, letting Ruby get a good view of Weiss. Ruby held down her comment as Vade pointed at part of her, near her entrance but still a fair distance away, though her clothes. "There's a trickle of blood that I can see coming from here." Vade explained, his glowing eye flickering.

"Okay." Ruby said. "Why is there blood?" She was doing her best not to be completely grossed out by the fact that Aya and Vade were looking inside her girlfriend, and checked on the former, who was still on her perch. She didn't seem nearly as disturbed as Rbuy was. A tap from Vade brought her back to attention, and he pointed at a part slightly upward of here the first point was.

"That's Weiss' hymen. Yang might have called it a cherry, purity, or something like that. Basically, the first time you do... things with someone, it breaks when you go a certain distance inside." Ruby saw him looking at her now, but her eyes were stuck on Weiss. "What you have there is a half-torn one."

"Half-torn?" Ruby muttered distractedly, still focused on Weiss body.

"When you had that thing last night, you tore it when you stuck your hand too far." Vade continued. "But only some of it was gotten, which is why Weiss was hurt on that night. Her aura and her body thinks it's damaged, not gone, so it's trying to repair it. That's why Weiss still feels sore today. If you want to cure her, then my recommendation is to reach inside and get the rest."

Wait. So that fold of skin was doing it?

She would definitely get rid of it the first chance she got.

She would do it with Weiss again, and...

Hold on.

How was she supposed to get Weiss to do... stuff with her? Every time so far, it had been Weiss who'd started it. What if-

"That's enough, Aya." Vade instructed. "Stop the connection."

The light left Aya's eye, and she fell against her father's back, fatigued. She was panting lightly too.

"Was... that what you... wanted, father?" Aya whispered faintly.

"It was." Vade responded, reaching back and ruffling her silvery hair. "Sleep if you want. I'll take care of the rest."

As Aya closed her eyes, still clinging to Vade's back, the conundrum inside Ruby continued as Vade slowly lifted up the duvet covers. It took Ruby a second to realize what he was doing.

"How could I- never mind." she said, deciding halfway through that Vade shouldn't be in this plan as she slowly crept onto the bed, letting Vade drape the covers over them both. It seemed that her thoughts were not private, however.

"Still wondering how to start it up again with your girl?" Vade asked, his smile returning. Okay, that was starting to get really annoying. How did he know every time?

"Yes, and can you quit doing that?" Ruby asked irritably.

"Knowledge, remember?" Vade reminded her as if he was patting an annoyed child on the head, and his smile did nothing to relieve Ruby's new found animosity. "Even if I didn't want to know. And as for your question, I'm sure Weiss has some fantasy, fetish, whatever, that'll turn her on, or get her ready. But a bit of advice between friends." he continued, putting emphasis on the last word. "Never try and force it. She'll come to you when she's ready, heh," he visibly tried and failed to suppress a chuckle, "in more ways than one."

"Too creepy." Ruby muttered at him as he turned to leave, piggybacking his little daughter on his black-clad back. He turned his head just as he opened the door.

"Just for the record, I'm rooting for you, Ruby. Weiss is a fine lady, from what I've seen anyway." he commented, before quietly slipping through the door, leaving Ruby alone with her three sleeping teammates.

Tomorrow, she was going to do it.

She'd finish what she'd started.

Sleep did not take long to take her on her nightly trip to her cookie filled dreams.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hoo boy, it's been a while. The tests are going well, but it hasn't been easy. It's actually really hard to not write my books, but to instead keep studying. Really, really hard. I was kinda cutting it close to my once a week thing this time, although my guess is that by the next time I upload, I should be able to start going at once every two days again.**

 **We also broke 12k on the views, and now I see the follower count nearing 90. Jeez, thank you all so much!**

 **Sorry about all this and thank you all again for being so patient. Now, on with the show!**

* * *

"He's... still... sleeping, isn't he?"

"Yes. In a deep sleep."

Vade stood with Aya by his side in a dark room. A black roof, walls and floor, with a reflective, glassy look, which clinked like a bottle as Aya shifted her feet beside him. A black door sat behind them, made of the same shiny material, with a pale, white door handle. Two torches in brackets on either side illuminated the room with a light not unlike the gentle caress of moonlight, if their source weren't bone white flames that flickered subtly.

On the other side, several paces away, a humanoid figure hung. His body was coated in a gold, fabric-like material which sparkled darkly in the anti-light, from his hands to his bare feet. He was bound by ethereal white ropes, splayed out in midair, arms and legs outstretched, as if about to fly, head pointed upwards, as if to gaze upon the skies, frozen in a gravity-defying pose. A helmet covered his head, the dull yet dark gold shimmering with an almost malevolent air. The black visor showed nothing, no view of the person inside. The machine he was suspended by intertwined networks of claw-like appendages and pincer extensions which held the rope that bound him.

As Vade took a step forward, he spotted the sparkles surrounding the man glimmer a little, shining ever brighter.

So he was aware of their presence.

"Master." Vade greeted. The aura of the bound one pulsed in response. "Progress is being made. Soon, it will be time to take the next one."

The aura pulsed again, then started to glow.

Thoughts of Ruby and Weiss filled his head.

"They are fine." Vade replied. "Their relationship is progressing past the sexual encounters."

Another pulse, and Vade felt the foreign thoughts leave his mind.

"Master?" Aya called out, and he turned to see her edging closer to the majestic figure. Vade did not follow; he knew that his master would not harm her. She reached out a small hand and touched the chest through the silken gold, right where the heart was. "Are you okay?"

Vade felt a vibration through the air as the Master's aura responded, sending waves through the air. Aya giggled a little, like she was being tickled, and Vade allowed himself to smile at the childish innocence of his daughter. To think she was actually playing with a being such as he, and he was responding to her curiosity and caress with kindness.

It was a touching scene, and Aya even waved goodbye as she returned to his side. Then, visions of a collapsed body infiltrated his mind once again.

"It will be done, master." Vade said, taking a bow as he reached for a book.

* * *

Weiss awoke slowly.

The birds were chirping outside the window, signalling the start of another day, though the sunlight shining through the window did the same.

A body was behind her, and she knew immediately who it was.

Ruby.

Weiss slowly edged away from her lover and turned in bed to face her.

She was curled up, her knees up where her chest was, and her hands were clasped together, though there was more of a lean to her sleeping pose, judging by the fact that Weiss wasn't pressed against her.

Weiss was torn.

Ruby should answer for her absence.

But at the same time, the note she'd left said that she'd tell her.

And she trusted Ruby.

But she wasn't there!

That didn't matter.

Weiss reached out and cupped the younger girl's cheek.

A blush then spread across her face, knowing what had transpired in between her match and her going to bed.

Ruby would find out, she decided, when she'd learned the truth.

Slowly, the silver eyes Weiss had grown to love started to crack open. Warmth was flowing slowly out of Ruby as she woke, pure, tender, loving. Soon, they were fully open , and Ruby stared up into Weiss' eyes, before giving a weak smile.

"Morning, Weiss." Ruby whispered. "What time is it?"

Weiss glanced over at the clock. It was 10 in the morning, but they didn't have any classes. What with their team being involved in the tournament and everything else.

"Ten'o'clock." Weiss responded, letting go of the soft cheek, then looking over at Yang and Blake's bunks, not seeing their owners anywhere. What were they doing so early in the morning? She'd expected Blake to be up, but Yang? She turned back to Ruby. "I got your note." she said. Ruby turned her gaze away, her face practically glowing with a blush.

"You... you want to know, right?" Ruby mumbled, her low voice audible in the near silence of the room. "Why I... was out." Why was her voice like every time they'd... been making love to each other? She was embarrassed, that was for sure, but about what?

"Yes. I do." Weiss replied. Ruby looked back at her, a pained expression on her face now. She really looked like she wanted to say something, what, Weiss had no idea.

"Um... this isn't easy f-for me to ask." Ruby stuttered, eyes wide with embarrassment. "B-but I can't... tell you without... doing it again. You know." Did she mean... sex? Again?

"Why would you need to do it before you can tell me?" Weiss asked. "You remember what I said, right?" she added. "You can tell me anything, and I won't get mad. I promised."

Well, it was a little bit from the truth. But Weiss needed Ruby to be honest, and to trust her. So far, there'd been several instances where she'd been either too embarrassed or frightened to say it. It really said a lot for how Ruby was now, just a girl seeking Weiss' love and acceptance.

"Um... well... please don't get mad at me." Ruby said with a begging expression on her face. If it weren't for the seriousness of the situation, it would have been one of the cutest things Weiss had ever seen her lover do. "I, uh, went and got some help. About your... down there." She motioned down at Weiss' lower regions, and Weiss had a funny feeling she knew who she'd called.

"You asked Vade. Didn't you?" Weiss asked, trying to keep her voice neutral, though it came off as more accusatory than calm. Ruby confirmed by nodding her head, tightening up a little bit. "What did he say?"

"He came in here. While you were asleep." Ruby replied, softly. At Weiss' nod, she continued. "I was desperate. I wanted to help you, but I didn't know anyone other than Vade. The doctors' would have made too much of a fuss... soooo... I asked him." She had been THAT desperate to help her? Even though it was only a little twinge? "He has a daughter, one with this x-ray eye semblance. They... they pulled the blanket off of you, and she looked at your... um, inside."

"And what did they find?" Weiss asked, calmly. It was better not to scold Ruby right now, as fragile a state as she was in right now. "What's wrong?"

"Vade said that your... um, you know what a hymen is, right?" Ruby continued quietly. Weiss did know, and she nodded to indicate that. "Well, he told me that yours had been torn when... we did that thing two night ago. But only torn. Your body's hurting because its trying to heal it, so Vade told me that we needed to break it."

So that was how it was. Using Vade, Ruby had found out that her hymen, the indicator of her virginity, had been torn, not completely broken. Now, she wanted to take the rest, to stop the pain. Weiss took a deep breath. While she disliked Vade quite a bit, if his insight was correct, then they had the solution to both those twinges of pain and Ruby's worries. Perhaps she should have given someone like him the benefit of the doubt, especially if he had a daughter as well.

But, there was more important stuff.

"Ruby, there's no way you're going to reach with anything but your nails... at least not without making me feel very uncomfortable." Weiss said, before she felt her own blush creeping out of her cheeks. "That's why, I, well, you should see it for yourself."

Leaving a staring Ruby in her bed, Weiss ventured over to her chest of drawers and reached for the bottom drawer. She held her scroll up to a Schnee brand padlock on the handle, and unlocked it, before looking inside. A diary laid there, some of her own lien, and the thing she was looking for, something she had to painstakingly smuggle into Beacon.

She withdrew a white and read double ended plastic dildo that had a handle in the middle of it, several buttons upon it. She turned around to see Ruby, her mouth hanging open, her expression of shock almost comical. Weiss resisted the urge to cover her face in shame, knowing that she had to step up, and that she'd gone through the harrowing experience of buying it in one of the more... adult shops in Vale.

"I got this while you were away." Weiss explained, calmly. "For when..." she took a moment to compose herself. "For when we lose our virginity together. I was going to save it, but..." she trailed off, as she approached her lover, laying the sex toy beside her.

"Weiss... I can't believe you actually got that." Ruby replied. "I mean... do you wanna use it?"

"It was for me and you." Weiss responded.

There was a moment where no one spoke, moved, nothing. Then, Ruby smiled, a smile that sent shivers down Weiss' back. It was... was that smile always so seductive? Or was it just her?

"Come on then. I'm going to try something new for me." Ruby called softly, lying back, completely at odds with her embarrassment from earlier. Realizing that questioning it would have been a foolish move, Weiss did not say anything more, instead playing along. Clambering onto the bed, she straddled Ruby, and ran her hands across the younger girl's stomach, through her pyjamas.

Knowing what Ruby wanted, Weiss reached under her shirt and cupped her breast, eliciting a squeak and a moan from her lover. She teased the supple flesh, caressing and tugging in equal measure, before bending over and locking lips with the crimsonette. Her tongue immediately flew out to attack her lover's and she responded in kind, fighting for dominance even as Weiss reeled in the new found confidence her lover suddenly had. She shifted positions so that she was over Ruby, releasing her breasts and allowing Ruby to remove her clothes.

As she removed her own nightie, she noticed Ruby rubbing her body sensually, and paused as she slowly removed her shirt, each motion trying to show as much as possible while also being an agonizingly slow striptease. Then, once her top was off, Ruby made a slow stroking motion as her hands went to her bottoms, and she even spread her legs a little, letting Weiss see the wetness between them, all the while still doing that seductive smile she now had.

It was turning Weiss on immensely.

As soon as Ruby had finished, Weiss was upon her, pinning her down and eliciting a small giggle from the crimsonette.

"Where did you become more confident?" Weiss asked, as her hand found her entrance, soaked with her lover's juices.

"I thought, its just me and you, there's nothing embarrassing." Ruby replied with an honest smile, before it changed into her lecherous one. "Plus, when you have the same scroll password as your sister and she leaves her scroll out, yeah, lets just say I picked up a couple of things."

"Is that so?" Weiss asked, pulling her toy towards them and lifting it above Ruby's head. "Because I think its time to do what you wanted to do."

It was like Weiss flipped a switch. The confidence Ruby had just been displaying immediately faded away, replaced by the nervous Ruby Weiss had seen before they'd started. Now her face clearly displayed that fact, especially the widening silver eyes.

"Please, be gentle." Ruby pleaded.

"Of course." Weiss replied softly, giving her gentle voice to calm the crimsonette. It worked, as she gave her a soft smile, before Weiss aimed the white end of the dildo at Ruby entrance. As she brushed it against the petals, Ruby twitched at the contact, and gave a low moan as it slowly entered her, stretching her insides just a little, the synthetic material of the expensive dildo responding to the pressure and contracting.

Looking up from her task, Weiss made eye contact with Ruby just as the dildo finally met a resistance.

She nodded.

Weiss pushed.

With a scream of pain from Ruby, the resistance broke, and Weiss immediately stopped pushing. Ruby was breathing hard, hissing with pain as her body jerked. For a single, heart-stopping moment, Weiss thought she'd done more damage than good, until she saw Ruby's face.

"It's... ow... its going down. The pain's stopping." Ruby hissed. "While I'm... gh... while I'm recovering it's... your turn." She winced a little as Weiss angled the tip of the red end towards her own entrance.

Now she was here, did she really want this?

To lose the last traces of her virginity to an extension of their mutual love?

The answer was obvious in Weiss' heart.

She lowered herself down, going as far as she could, before she felt a sharp twinge of pain that had meant she'd finished what Ruby had started. She let out a harsh groan of pain as she fell against Ruby, the dildo bending to accommodate the new position. Ruby's soft, silky skin pressed against hers, their breasts mashed against one-another in a plethora of pleasurable sensation.

"We did it." Ruby whispered beside her, as Weiss laid her head face-down beside her own, feeling a kiss on the nape of her neck from her lover. "You took mine... and I took yours. Can we just like, lie here for a bit?"

"Of course we can, Ruby." Weiss replied, softly, letting Ruby turn them around so that they were side to side, embracing each other, not even caring about their nudity or the fact that there was still the phallic object lodged within their entrances. For Weiss, the transition from maiden to loved was complete. She finally had Ruby Rose's affection, and Ruby Rose had accepted her own.

This was perfect.

* * *

As Vade watched his Master, he felt a sudden tremor in the very foundations of the Dark Library.

Without warning, the binds on their master's body snapped, sending him crashing to the floor, his helmeted head impacting the floor with a loud 'BANG', as if two frying pans had been smashed together, the noise echoing throughout the building.

Aya jumped and immediately buried her face in his leg, Vade reacting instantly and crouching in order to let her go into his protective embrace. As the little body shuddered against him, he peered out behind the slivers of silvery hair.

"Well, I don't know what just happened." Vade whispered comfortingly to a now tearful Aya, his right eye glowing red. "But it seems like something just made it easier for our master to awaken." He patted his daughter on the back. "There there. Shh. Father's here."

"And we are one step closer to your awakening, Master." he added.


	13. Chapter 13

**Man, I am so glad that part of my life is over. Now that the exams are done, I can finally start uploading again at the usual pace! Thank you all for bearing with me, and I hope I haven't kept you all waiting for too long!**

 **Things are finally starting to come to a head here. I'll say no more, just, well, okay fine, one more thing.**

 **Let's get to it!**

* * *

Ruby relaxed on one of the many public benches at Beacon, resting her aching leg muscles.

It had been several days since she'd had her time with Weiss, and made up with her. It had been easier than she thought. Now only the one-on-ones in the tournament were left. If what Weiss said about the doubles matches were true, then that meant the finals were going to be tough. Still, her big sis was no pushover either, much stronger than any of the rest of their team, and that meant Ruby as well.

It wasn't like she was angry at Yang for that. Really, there was no way she'd be stronger or better than Yang right now. Maybe later, when they'd passed Beacon, then she'd beat her and get her crown.

She looked up at the clear blue skies above her head, something she honestly didn't do that much. There were clouds up there, few and far inbetween, but they were up there. A calm, serene sense washed over her as she picked out different shapes in the clouds. There was one shaped like Zwei, another like a moon, there was a bullhead over there, and back up closer to her was a curl of Weiss' hair.

Wait, what?

She tilted her head back very slightly, finding that the strands of alabaster hair did in fact grow to a crown of lengthy hair flowing around the head of its owner, like a small waterfall parted by a pale stone. A pale forehead, its surface smoother than polished glass. Then, two eyes which stared straight back into her own, light blue in colour, eyes which calmed her racing heart.

"Greetings, Ruby Rose."

Ruby's heart missed a beat.

That wasn't Weiss' voice.

Frantically raising her head and turning around, she saw Winter Schnee before her, and not Weiss, who she'd thought it was. Her eyes looked up momentarily, though for what reason Ruby couldn't work out, before she focused on Ruby once again. The piercing gaze was making it really difficult for Ruby to sit up straight, like it was sapping her strength.

"May I join you?" she asked. Ruby said nothing, still having lost control of her tongue, she nevertheless slid along the bench so that Winter could sit with her. Taking the hint, Winter circled the bench and sat on Ruby's left side, her movements robotic, as if there was a protocol to such a simple action. Clasping her arms in her lap, her back straighter than a classroom ruler, she seemed almost out of place in such a relaxed setting. Ruby hastened to copy her movements, even as she commented "Wonderful weather for Vale, is it not?"

"Yeah." Ruby confirmed awkwardly, not sure why the weather of all things was being talked about. Another moment of silence passed, before Winter spoke again.

"Something is bothering me." she intoned. "May I have your opinion on the matter?"

"What is it?" Ruby asked, thoughts of Weiss still at the forefront of her mind. Now that she stopped and looked, Winter and Weiss might have been twins if Winter wasn't a bit older than her girlfriend. Winter's eyes left her own for a moment, darting to the left before fixing upon her again.

"Tell me, how do you think Weiss is performing thus far?" she asked.

She wanted to talk about Weiss? Okay then.

"I think she's doing fine." Ruby replied honestly. "She's doing well in her classes, she helped our team get to the one-on-ones in the tournament, and she's doing all that while not missing any homework or anything. Yeah..." Ruby trailed off there. The gaze on her hardened a little before it returned to its previous intensity, and Ruby had the distinct feeling that that was not the stuff Winter wanted to hear.

"Academically, yes, Weiss is performing as expected." Winter remarked. "But it is not the issue. I am referring to her emotional states. How she feels." Her mouth was still a straight line. Gosh, would it kill to smile every once in a while?

"Well, I don't think there's anything bothering her." Ruby said, uncertainly. When they'd seen each other, nothing had been wrong, right?

"I see." Winter responded, before treating Ruby to an uncomfortable moment of silence. "I have." Without waiting for Ruby to react, she elaborated. "She's been increasingly distracted recently, which has made it harder for her to concentrate on developing her semblance. Her main source of mental strength has changed, as well. Do you follow me so far?"

"Yep." Ruby replied. "Yes." she said, at Winter's raised eyebrows, before their owner rolled her eyes. What was that supposed to mean?

"She claims she's found something stronger, something new to hope for. And while I agree that she has needed a greater drive to succeed, this new source is the source of the distractions as well. It is more difficult for her to use her glyphs in new ways. Do you understand?" Winter continued. "I am pleased for her, but I must also ask that you make sure she isn't distracted. Can you do this for me?"

"Sure." Ruby replied, squirming a little under her sharp gaze. Was she talking about the love between them?

"Perfect. Now-" Winter responded, but her next words were cut off by a call from Ruby's other side.

"Heya, Ruby." Ruby turned her head, thankful of a reason to look away from the piercing eyes of Weiss' sister, to see Vade slowly walking towards her. His red eyes weren't covered by contact lenses this time, and Ruby just watched as the man strode towards the bench. His eyes met Winter's, both exchanging an implicit, icy stare. "Whoops. Did I interrupt something?"

"Nothing of importance. Are you a friend of Ruby's?" Winter asked, Ruby glancing between them. Vade cracked one of his classic knowing smiles, the kind that made Ruby uncomfortable, though she had made him promise to stop doing that to her. It seemed as though his word didn't prevent him from doing it to other people.

"Yep." Vade replied. "Just wondered if she would be out here at close to ten in the morning."

Ruby turned just in time to see Winter check her watch, and her eyes registered a moment of shock, something eerily similar to Weiss' or maybe that was because they were sisters. She stood up immediately.

"Ruby, I am afraid my time is short. Goodbye." Winter said, shortly, before departing swiftly, not even giving Ruby a chance to say bye back. She watched her go, hearing a chuckle beside her as Vade walked around her, sitting in the exact same spot Winter had sat in. He was a lot more relaxed about it, and Ruby silently thanked him for his casualness, as it meant she could mirror him. She relaxed into the bench in turn, and stared up at him.

"I don't know about you," he said, eyes not on Ruby, "but that one looked important. What did she want, just out of curiosity?"

"She's just Weiss' sister." Ruby replied, as he withdrew an apple from a pocket and took a bite, leaving a decent-sized crater in the crisp, red surface. Gosh it had been a long time since she'd had one. "She was just checking up on Weiss." Ruby continued, trying to take her eyes off the sweet treat currently in Vade's left hand.

"So that was why." Vade muttered to himself. "How's the tournament going?" he asked, turning to face Ruby, the crimson gaze soft, not nearly as strong as she was used to from him. Almost like a normal person's, if that person had crimson instead of whites for eyes.

"It's fine. We're up in the final rounds." Ruby said.

"Who's going in?" Vade queried.

"Yang." Ruby answered.

"The fiery one? Your sister?" Vade asked, taking another bite as Ruby nodded. "That'll be interesting." He threw the half finished apple in a high arc behind him, and Ruby watched it as it soared over the path in-between them and the bin, before bouncing off the rim and landing in the grass. "Did I get it?"

"Nope." Ruby replied, as he turned and saw where it had landed. Vade then pointed at the apple, and a book appeared from out of nowhere, lifted up the apple and deposited it in the bin, before vanishing again. Curiosity getting the better of her, Ruby asked "What are those books anyway?"

"Ever heard the expression the pen is mightier than the sword, and the book mightier than the shield?" Vade asked. "Well, I said that they were all worlds like ours, and you've seen for yourself how strong they are. What else is there really to know?"

"Like why I can't slice them in half." Ruby listed. "Why do you use them as weapons? How do they appear from anywhere? Y'know, there's more to them than what you're saying." It was all true.

"Welp, they're all questions I can't answer." Vade responded coyly, tilting his head in an almost playful way. "The same goes for how I beat you when we fought, before you ask. But I can tell you this." He leaned towards Ruby, putting an arm on the bench behind her, so that he was barely a foot away. "Not all of my power is my own. And before you ask, no, I won't tell you if my finishing move came from me."

Had he read her mind again? She was going to ask him about the implosion attack he'd used. Darn his semblance!

"Where's Aya?" Ruby asked, remembering his seven-year old daughter, the cute, silver haired girl who'd got her the leaf that was now on her desk. Vade's expression calmed a little, almost serene in his appearance now, shifting so that he was further away.

"She's down with a cold." Vade explained. "And having a body as weak as hers, that can be really bad."

"Why aren't you with her then?" Ruby asked him. It felt weird that a father like him was not there for her, helping her.

"She's resting. I'd only be making more noise than help." Vade replied, glancing behind him. Ruby followed his gaze to see Mercury walking past them with Cinder, and while the latter looked fine, Mercury was noticeably more... down. "Poor souls." she heard Vade mutter.

"Why?" Ruby inquired, watching as they left.

"Didn't you hear?" Vade said, also watching. "They lost one of their team."

Wait, what? Lost one? What did he-

"Emerald was found dead in Vale." Vade continued, meeting her eyes with a serious expression, his right eye glowing a little. "Murdered."

"She... she's dead?!" Ruby exclaimed, shock flooding through her system. That girl with the green hair, the one who'd been nice to her, she was gone?

"Yeah." Vade replied. "I've already had someone from the police come and see me, paid a good sum for any information I had." He sighed, resting his hand on his forehead. "I had the quote-unquote _pleasure_ of seeing the body when they took me to the scene of the crime, and it wasn't pretty. Looked to me like we have a brutal one out there, whoever they might be. What I want to really find out is how someone managed it. She was another huntress in training, right?"

"Yeah." Ruby said, feeling a little sick inside. She'd completely forgotten about what it could be like out in the city. All sorts of things happened at night, that was why Mom always tucked her into bed when the darkness flared in the sky.

"Do me a favor, Ruby." Vade requested calmly, the harshness in his voice suddenly gone like a stack of cards in a storm. He turned back to meet her eyes, smiling softly, completely at odds with how he was like the first time they'd met. "If anything happens to anyone here, the next time you see me, let me know. Doesn't matter to me how small; if you think something's threatening anyone here, tell me. I want to make sure no other tragedies happen here. Can you do that for me?"

Without waiting for Ruby's reply, he stood up and looked up at the tower where Ozpin's office was.

"Oh, and I saw you looking earlier." he added, reaching into his pocket and withdrawing a second apple, tossing it behind him, Ruby gingerly catching the precious fruit, not expecting his throw to be so accurate after his last attempt. "Stay safe."

With that, he vanished into thin air, leaving Ruby alone with her thoughts once again.

And that apple.

 _Crunch._

It really was as sweet as she thought!


	14. Chapter 14

**And would you look at that. This story, which I just want to reiterate, was only supposed to be a one-shot, has nearly reached the 100 followers club! Wow. You guys have really eclipsed my subscribers on Youtube. By a lot.**

 **I'm slowing down, unfortunately, but I'm trying to stick to a chapter once every three days, because, well, even though I just had exams, the guys up at uni aren't done with me yet, it seems. Holy crud. Still, as long as I can keep this up, I will.**

 **Without further ado, let's just get going!**

* * *

Mercury followed Cinder as she led him through Vale. Not bothering to take in where they were going.

Doing everything he could to look 'normal'.

Still thinking about his childhood friend.

Em. The pet name he'd never said to her face, for fear of losing it. And that moment where he'd lost her.

She'd never come back after she'd gone to get something. That night. No sign of her in the morning, then Cinder found... that picture.

It was slipped under the door, and had the message 'Found you' with a heart next to it, in red ink. Too similar to blood. Cinder had picked it up, then looked at the image on the other side, then refused to show it to him, saying that Emerald was dead, and that they needed to be even more cautious than before. Even after he'd demanded to see it, Cinder had refused, instead engulfing it in flames and tossing the ashes out of the window.

She'd refused to say anything afterwards, but had instead promised him that he 'would get his time with the one that did it'.

Who was it? And where were they headed?

Cinder reached her destination, and beckoned Mercury closer to her. He glanced up at the shop's name, but couldn't make it out as it reflected the searing sunlight into his eyes.

* * *

"So how is he?" Vade asked.

"Still asleep, even... though his bonds... are now broken." came the soft reply.

Vade stood at the end of a black and white covered bed, whose legs perfectly matched the black, glass-like flooring. It was another featureless room, save two torches emanating white flames from the walls. And a door behind him. In the bed laid Aya, and the golden suited figure from the other room, still armoured, its head cradled by the tiny girl. Aya was watching it with a troubled expression, sniffling occasionally.

"Master's breathing... has changed." Aya continued, looking up at her father with wide eyes, giving another sniff that indicated a blocked nose. "He was... fidgeting just before... you came in, too. It... isn't long now, is it... Father? Until he... wakes up?"

"No. No it isn't." Vade confirmed. "Soon, we will-"

He was interrupted by a red flash on his gold band, and stared at it.

"I'll be right back." Vade assured, before he winked, and vanished.

Aya sighed softly, and laid back on the pillow next to her master, and quietly drifted off.

* * *

Ruby decided to walk to the training arena, where she'd agreed to meet the rest of her team.

As soon as she stepped inside, she was greeted by a sight that transfixed her.

Yang and Weiss were dueling.

And oh boy, did Weiss look beautiful in combat. She'd never really liked the rapier called Myrtenaster (a toothpick compared to her beloved), but here she saw it arching through the air, transitioning gracefully from one attack to the next, the flow between guard and counter a tapestry only she could truly see.

It was amazing.

Really amazing.

And she thought Yang looked good in combat. She was the toughest one of her team, and it reflected in the way she saw Yang punch and punch and punch, occasionally deflecting a blow with the flat of her gauntlets. The flames that flickered as she threw attack after attack showcased just how hardcore her sis could be. It was showing in the aura indicators too.

The last sliver was deducted from Weiss' aura, and she immediately backed up, both combatants panting hard. Upon seeing her, Yang gave a thumbs up, which Ruby returned, before wandering over to her real target. Giving her no time to react, she grasped the heiress from behind and swept her off her feet, not caring about the sweat dripping from her body or the surprised little screech she gave when caught off guard.

"Hey Weiss." Ruby whispered as she saw Yang slip into a fit of laughter, and colour flared in the heiress' cheeks.

"Put me down, dolt." Weiss muttered, embarrassed. "I'm all sweaty." Did that matter?

"I've held you when you were sweatier than this, right?" Ruby replied. For some reason, Weiss struggled all the harder, her blush deepening, but Ruby held on with an iron grip. "What's wrong?" she asked, worriedly.

"Never mind." Weiss said with a defeated tone. Ruby lowered her to the ground dejectedly. Was that really so bad? Weiss turned around and saw her sheepish look, planting one of her trademark kisses on her cheek in response. "I'm happy to see you, too. Your sister's been getting up a winning streak."

"Ten-nothing!" Yang yelled out, punching the air. "I might have to resort to the duel app eventually!"

Duel app, huh? That gave Ruby an idea. Taking Weiss by the hand, she moved closer to her sister, with a smile on her face.

"Say, Yang, mind doing me a favor?" Ruby asked sweetly, pulling out her scroll.

"Yeah? What's up?" Yang inquired, still full of energy even after that tough fight.

"There's someone on here that's really tough. Like, reeaaally tough. Think you can fight him?" Ruby asked, thinking of Vade. He was tough, and would be the perfect opponent for Yang, to really make sure she was ready. The books he used were also like Penny's swords, so Yang would be able to practice against floating weapons too.

"Bring it on!" Yang replied, pulling out her own scroll. "What's his name?"

"Vade... uh... I don't actually know his second name." Ruby replied.

"You mean like Darth?" Yang quipped, as she thumbed the name into the app.

"No, just V-A-D-E." Weiss said, sharing a look with Ruby that meant she was on the same wavelength as Ruby. Yang rolled her eyes at them with a joking expression on her face.

"Weissy, I'm sorry, but I can S-P-E-L-L." Yang joked, looking at the profile page. "Damn. Red question mark for a rank huh? Isn't this the same guy you told me about, Rubes?"

"Yup." Ruby replied.

"I'll send a request." Yang said, hitting the button.

"No... need." came a soft voice behind Ruby. She wheeled around, and yet there was nothing there. What?

"Who are you?" Weiss asked.

Ruby turned and looked at her girlfriend, who was looking down, and followed her eyes to see a familiar silver haired child standing before them.

"Aya? What are you doing here?" Ruby asked as the petite child gave her a small, soft smile.

"You know her?" Weiss asked.

"Aww, you're cute." Yang said from behind both.

"She's Vade's little girl." Ruby replied. "The one with the x-ray eye semblance. But wait, weren't you supposed to be sick with a cold?" She remembered what Vade had said, about her being asleep and ill.

"Well, I was... stuffed up in the... morning, but then... after a nap... I was fine." Aya answered, breathing a little harder than normal. "Did Father... tell you that?"

"He did." Ruby replied, bending down, hands on her knees, so that she was at the same level as the little, navy eyed girl. He heard Yang gasp a little as she noticed the girl's eyes, and Ruby wouldn't blame her. Purely navy, except for two black dots where her pupils were.

"He worries about... me too... much." Aya said softly. "But he... gave me a message... to give to... you all. He said he... knows about... your intent to... challenge him... at some point. He wants... to know... do you want... him to fight... at full strength... or at half?"

"Full." Yang said, immediately, before Ruby could even warn her that what she'd gotten when she faced Vade hadn't been his true power. Aya took a step back from Ruby, eyes now fixed on Yang.

"Then... you won't mind... having two opponents." the small girl replied. "You know... Ruby," she locked eyes with Ruby's own, deep, navy windows to the child's soul, "I watched... your fight with... Father." She closed her eyes.

* * *

"No! These books suck!" the girl in red yelled as she ducked under her father's books.

Aya watched from the stands, hidden from view by the chairs. She was impressed, the girl had survived against her father for longer than she'd expected.

She rolled out of the way of another attack, causing the books to collide with each other, before becoming practically translucent and zipping forwards! Her father winked, and teleported behind her at the last moment, causing the red one to stop and spin around. Two more books had appeared from behind her father's back now.

Four.

End.

So it was time?

"You know, you've impressed me, Ruby." Vade said, as Aya peeked her head up, getting herself into a good position, and watching. Ruby? That was her name? "With how hard you fight... I definitely wouldn't have taken you for a student." her father continued.

There was a pause, then-

"Ah. So that's your secret. That's cute. Very cute. Don't worry, I won't tell." the man in black said. What secret was this? Ruby was blushing now. "Welp," Vade cracked his knuckles, a signal for Aya, "it's time for this song and dance to end. Even if you're unusually strong for a student, what you face is beyond you."

Aya crossed her index and middle fingers, before raising her thumb in a gun shape. She aimed at the girl, who had raised her scythe, thinking that her father would be the one to strike.

"No..." she whispered to herself. "You're... mine... now."

She felt the familiar sensation of her hand and arm getting tired, and the aura building up.

"You know, there's a reason why my rank is a question mark." Vade said, clearly distracting the girl, giving Aya time to really make this one count. She responded by charging... more... more... more! "Rank means nothing to me. I transcended that system long ago. They recognized that."

He jumped up, hovering about ten feet off the ground, his legs crossed, and Aya knew it was almost time to release.

"Don't believe me? Then how about I show you?"

He pointed at Ruby, and snapped his fingers.

Aya waited for another second, and then released.

An invisible bolt flew straight at the girl, behind her by about five meters. Then-

BOOM!

* * *

"Remember... what he... said?" Aya continued, opening her eyes again.

"It wasn't his true power?" Ruby asked, sure that wasn't what Aya was getting at. But, the girl gave her a smile, a smile that let Ruby know that she was right. But then, that would mean-

"I'm the... second half... of his true... power." she replied.

"Something that you may have found had you been paying attention." another familiar voice sounded out, this one from behind Yang. They all turned to see Vade, who had literally just appeared behind them. He was holding a scroll up, a scroll that displayed Yang's portrait on the screen alongside her rank of 37. It was printed in yellow for him.

"You're Vade, right?" Yang asked. Vade nodded, as Aya circled around them, returning to her father's side.

"Yup." Vade replied, his smile not sinister like when he and Ruby had first met, more of a thoughtful smile. "Ready for the final rounds tomorrow?"

"Yeah." Yang replied, Ruby locking eyes with Weiss, whose eyes flashed a question. She nodded, and they both backed up.

"Good luck!" Ruby called out. Yang looked back and responded with a smile and a wink.

* * *

As Yang watched her sister and partner retreat to the stands, she sized up her competition. Vade was a red number, whatever he was, so he had to be tough. He was taller than her, so he would be vulnerable down low. Aya was small, and looked weak, but she had a feeling that she was strong in her own way.

"Shall we do this then?" Yang asked.

"Certainly." Vade replied, as the aura indicators started up again. Two bars now opposed her, and both were full. As bad as it was, Yang was watching Aya. She would likely be the weakest of the two, in fact, why was Vade letting her fight at all? She was so... frail, and she mentioned as much. While Vade remained silent, the little girl giggled, unafraid of her in the slightest.

"Looks aren't... everything, Yang." Aya responded quietly, before she climbed onto Vade's back, situating herself so that she was attached to her father's back, peeking her head out from beside her fathers. Both gave a devilish grin, two eyes glowed, and they entered a combat stance, Aya's arms underneath her father's, making it look as if Vade had four arms and two heads.

How would they even fight?

Two black books were floating beside the pair, and as Yang watched, two larger-than-life pens joined them, each the size of a walking stick, the ballpoint of each sharpened into a point like a spear. The four apparitions circled their masters, the tomes swirling gracefully through the air as the styluses danced threateningly, points aimed directly at her.

"At your ready, Yang." Vade said, his crimson aura flaring around the two.

"Prepare to... face the touch... of destiny." Aya added, her small smile reminiscent of her father's cruel grin.

Yang felt a shiver shoot down her back, a cold sweat braking out.

This was going to be tough.


	15. Chapter 15

**Bam! There it is. 100 followers. I did all my gushing last chapter, now is where it is justified. Thanks, to each and every one of you.**

 **Let's continue.**

* * *

There was many things that Ruby was feeling as she watched the floating books and pens fly at her sister from her two opponents.

One thing was definitely there though.

Awe.

Yang charged forwards, always the aggressive attacker, gauntlets deployed. She reached the pair in seconds, knocking aside shield-like tomes and spear-resembling pens alike, closing to within an inch, the pair of arms belonging to Aya swinging upwards to the sky, then-

BAM!

Yang was sent flying backwards, her aura plummeting as she rebounded off a spherical energy field that Aya had seemingly summoned within seconds. Landing on her feet, Yang fired off a series of shots, but all were deflected by the same shield, Aya's aura dropping a little with each hit. Now Vade was on the attack, running at Yang, one of the giant pens in his hand as a blade, two books conjoining on his other arm into a diamond-shaped buckler. Bullets from Yang pitter-pattered off his daughter's protective barrier as he neared her, leaping up into the air-

CLANG!

Ruby held her ears as they stung from the reverberating impact of metal on metal, looking up again to see Yang flying backward, half her aura gone in an instant, from that one strike. This time she fell on her back, and stood back up as Vade changed tack again, crouching and doubling over so that he was on all fours, his daughter on his back making gun shapes with her hands.

Yang looked like she knew what was coming, as she started to run at them again, shooting behind her, determined to get them before Aya did... whatever she was about to do. Her hands glowed a sinister navy, energy crackling around her fingertips as she pointed them right at her sister, her hair sticking out as the energy continued to flow through her.

Just before she could complete her charge, Vade flipped upside down, causing Aya to fire downwards, the black and white blast knocking Yang back again and sending Vade flying backwards, his daughter desperately clinging to his back before he slammed down into the steel ground at the other side of the arena.

Weiss audibly gasped as both combatants rose, and Ruby turned to look at her. She was wearing a shocked expression, and Ruby had to tap Weiss on the shoulder to get her attention.

"Weiss? What's up?" Ruby asked worriedly.

"That girl... Vade's little girl." Weiss said, slowly, as if realizing something. "Ruby, do you remember the time he beat you with an explosion like that?"

"What? Oh, yeah." Ruby replied, watching two figures clash again out of the corner of her eye. "What about it?"

"Ruby, didn't you see it? His _daughter_." Weiss explained, putting emphasis on the last as she put her hands on Ruby's shoulders. "She's only, what, nine? And she can do something like that already!"

Wait. The attack that Ruby had been trying to figure out, the one that had taken her out in a single blow, the one she'd spent many nights crafting theory after theory on how to beat something as powerful as that, and it hadn't been him this whole time?!

She turned back just in time to see a fiery Yang, semblance fully active, flying at Vade, fury plain in her red eyes. She closed quickly, and Ruby was sure that she'd just be deflected by Aya's barrier again.

Vade did the one thing she didn't expect.

He flinched and turned away, exposing Aya on his back.

The shield, which was revealed to only be facing forwards, slipped as Aya was dislodged.

In slow motion, Yang's fist flew straight past Vade's reflexive block, colliding with the fragile body of Aya, her aura flashing bright white as it broke, and she was blown off Vade's back, flying half the length of the arena, before she landed flat on her back, right next to their part of the stands, motionless, her petite face a visage of pure agony.

She hadn't even screamed.

"Aya!" Vade called out, disappearing and warping to the fallen girl, Yang spinning around to work out where he'd gone.

Ruby stood up in her seat to get a better view.

No.

Was Aya?

"F-f-father?" she called out weakly as she cracked her unnatural eyes open. "I-I, ee!" she squeaked as her father lifted her up, cradling her in his arms, bowing his head. "T-take all m-my power. Make h-h-her pay... f-f-for that." Her body started to glow a bright blue, icy mist flowed around her and her father, before she finally vanished from his arms.

Wait, did she?

"Vade I'm so sorry!" Yang cried out from across the arena. Ruby tore her eyes off Vade to see her sister running towards her opponent, all rage gone from her, clearly stunned by what had just happened. She halted as Vade looked up at her, his own signature glow in his right eye.

And Aya's in his left.

Ruby was transfixed. He looked almost angrier than Yang had ever gotten.

Was that the power of a connection between father and daughter?

"The fight's not over." Vade growled, pointing up at the aura indicators, which showed Aya's at 0, but his still at 100. "You might have felled my daughter, but you still have to deal with me. And I will CRUSH YOU!" he roared the last two words, purple aura replacing his red, forming a transparent barrier around him as he started to hover in place, a black vortex replacing a good few meters of the floor underneath him.

Ruby noticed the aura indicator turn white, and fear for her sister welled up inside her.

She knew what white meant.

Vade had made himself invulnerable somehow!

"Take THIS!" Vade yelled, raising his hand. Two books fluttered beside him and opened upwards, revealing pure black pages, an empty hole in each. Two old-style bombs, fuses and everything, appeared from the void within each book, each the size of a football. With a swing of his hands, both were sent flying at Yang, who quickly dodged out of the way.

As each bomb hit the floor, the whole place shook as it exploded in a white-flamed blast. One, two, three, four more were thrown, Yang desperately dodging each one, firing off bursts from her gauntlets, the shells bouncing harmlessly off Vade's seemingly impenetrable aura.

"This is insane." Weiss muttered under her breath, as Vade then stopped, hand going to his chest, his breathing becoming ragged, his shield fading, though the vortex under him continued to swirl dangerously, threateningly, promising pain to any that pondered paddling in it. Yang flew through the air, delivering a solid punch to her suddenly weakened opponent, cutting his aura by about a third.

Vade swiftly recovered and raised his shield again, but Yang's movement's struck a chord with Ruby, who realized what her sis was doing.

"Clever." Ruby said to herself, as the two books opened up, Yang getting ready to dodge more bombs. "Wait until he tires out, then hit him."

Instead of bombs, lightning streamed out, the sparks of energy cascading into ball of energy above Vade's head. He then held a palm out, and motioned downwards.

A wave of force flew from the orb, surging in a tsunami of force at Yang's legs, and she jumped and fired to avoid it.

Another sweep, this time upward, and Yang threw herself to the ground as it soared above her head in a wall far too high to jump.

Left. Yang sidestepped a stream to the right.

Right, then up. Her sister reacted, first moving to the left and crouching to avoid both waves at the same time.

As Vade's shields went down for the second time, Yang reached him and leaped up, connecting with a brutal uppercut that knocked down his aura by another third.

One hit left.

"ENOUGH!" Vade roared, suddenly throwing out a shockwave that blasted Yang back, impossible to dodge, draining her aura to a sliver off red. The two books appeared again, this time circling around their master. The void underneath him vanishing, Vade landed lightly on the ground, before crouching and pointing at Yang, his whole body glowing a deep red.

A ball of energy was growing around his fists, and he pointed them at Yang as they grew brighter and brighter, until finally-

A flash of white light erupted in Ruby's eyes, and she instantly covered her eyes. There was a howling, wind-like sound, as though the very air cried out from the force of Vade's last attack. A yell of pain, although from who Ruby couldn't tell, audible even over the cacophony of metal and air.

When she opened her eyes next, she saw a black scorch mark running from the center of the arena to the wall, where a crater had been opened by what had clearly been a giant laser. Yang was nowhere in sight. Neither was Vade.

"Yang!" Ruby cried out. Oh no. Had she survived that blast? She had to. She HAD TO!

"You... win." Vade groaned. Ruby turned her attention to just below where they were sitting.

Vade was flat on his back, with her sister on top of him. He was pinned by Yang's knee, and a quick glance showed Vade's aura was completely drained, while her sister still had that sliver. Both were panting, hard, and as Yang got off him, Ruby could see sweat glistening on the pair of them. Vade held out his hand.

"That was..." Yang gasped a bit, still gulping down air, "the toughest fight I've ever had."

"Mine too." Vade responded, as Yang helped him up.

"Wait, what? What happened?" Weiss asked, hurriedly, as both turned their gazes towards them.

"Final Ender." Vade replied. "That's the name of the attack I used. If I had hit Yang with it, I would have won."

"A giant laser." Yang explained. "And yeah, judging by the crater, that was your strongest move?"

"Without Aya, yes." Vade confirmed, dusting off his black clothes. "You fought really well, Yang. I never even knew I had a pattern that could be exploited."

"Same. That aura thing you did to make yourself invulnerable was... really scary." Yang replied. Vade held out his hand again to Yang.

"If you can beat me, then you've got no problem winning the tournament." Vade assured, as Yang took the proffered handshake. "I don't think anyone else will be quite as ridiculous as-"

He was cut off by a orb of blue light that appeared without warning before them, making Ruby jump at the flash of blue light.

"Father!" Aya's voice echoed out of it. "I-it's master! Come quick!"

"On it." Vade said, before turning his attention back to them. "See you girls at some point."

With that, he vanished without a trace. Leaving an awkward silence behind them.

"Well, that was a thing." Yang panted.

* * *

Vade materialized in the Master's bedroom, immediately rushing to Aya's side.

"Everything healed okay?" he asked, taking a seat next to her and their Master's armoured form, feeling a soothing sensation on his skin, like the air around it was a balm for his burns and bruises.

"The Master's... aura heals... people like us. You... told me that... once." Aya replied, gasping a little for breath. "I was... hurting really bad... couldn't move... then I came back here... and now... I feel... like a new... girl."

Vade was about to reply when he heard it.

The sound in the back of his head.

It made his heart leap and stop at the same time.

 _'...made ultimate...'_

 _'...love eternal...'_

 _'...death unto...'_

 _'...the last promise...'_

 _'...destruction of the...'_

Finally. He gave Aya a wide smile, and she did the same.

"Master's not far from waking up, Aya." he reassured, planing a soft kiss on her forehead.

"Then... the final... word of his... prophecy?" Aya asked.

"Already locked in." Vade responded, staring into the white flames of a torch in the room of the dark library. "People are going to have a bad time."


	16. Chapter 16

**Okay, just want to get this off my chest. I actually had this chapter written back when I was at chapter 6 of this book. I've been looking forward to releasing it, and now the moment's finally come.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 _'...the promised...'_

 _'...never to be...'_

 _'...embodiment...'_

Weiss couldn't sleep.

For the last five minutes, she'd been in bed, intending to get an early rest. Aside from Blake, who was asleep in one of her 'cat naps' (according to Yang), she was alone. As she'd closed her eyes, small, whistling sounds had started playing in the back of her mind, taking up the space where her logical self normally stood. They'd started out as mere wind, but now, they were full blown whispers, inaudible had she been in a quiet room, yet here they may as well be right beside her, whoever 'they' were.

 _'...close now...'_

 _'...feelings of...'_

 _'...pain unto prosperity...'_

She curled up in a fetal position, clutching her temple, trying desperately to tune the ghostly voices out. Most of the time the voice was incoherent, unrecognizable, like an out-of-tune radio, but there were segments of the spectral sentences that she could make out, now that she had her eyes shut tight.

 _'...bound one...'_

 _'...upon four...'_

 _'...lay the light...'_

It was like a part of her had rebelled and was refusing to give her peace. The incessant words were burning into her very soul, carving their message upon her heart.

 _'...mark of His...'_

 _'...call of they...'_

 _'...rest in joy...'_

Stop it.

 _'...resist not...'_

 _'...from whence...'_

 _'...two fall to one...'_

Stop it!

 _'...within worlds...'_

 _'...the first coming...'_

 _'...chaos reborn...'_

"Stop it!" she hissed at the voices.

"Weiss?" a familiar voice called from above. Weiss opened her eyes, revealing her knees, her arms wrapped around them. Her head was under the duvet, and there was a pair of arms around her shoulders. Looking up, Weiss saw the body of Ruby Rose, and pushed upwards with her legs, surfacing from the duvet as if it were a warm spa. A concerned expression sat upon Ruby's face, clearly worried for her. Weiss laid her head on her lover's chest, trying to seek solace from the ever present voices in her head.

 _'...lord of creation...'_

 _'...nightmare made...'_

 _'...false monarch...'_

"Weiss? What's wrong?" Ruby's whisper accompanied those in her mind.

"I'm hearing things." Weiss replied, shuddering a little. "There are... things whispering in my head. I think I'm going crazy. Can you hear them?" She hoped to everything holy that Ruby did hear them, that she wasn't about to go crazy, snap under these strange whispers.

"I'm not." Weiss' heart sank. "But I think Blake's feeling something weird too." Eh? Blake? Weiss looked up at Ruby with a look of confusion. What did Blake have to do with thi-

She heard the voice.

"Call upon... all those..." Blake's soft voice sounded out from across the room.

 _'...all those...'_ the voice spoke in time with Blake.

"Who are touched... with a black mark..."

 _'...a black mark...'_

"Let yourself... be His Night Walker..."

 _'...Night Walker...'_

Weiss slipped out of bed, still hearing the voices of both Blake and the entity inside her head, slowly closing with the faunus. Sure enough, her teammate was asleep, yet she was sleep talking? The same words in her head no less?

This was no coincidence.

"She's saying the same things that the voices in my head are saying." Weiss said, not turning to Ruby, listening intently as she murmured the next verse of her unknowing prayer.

"Upon us... comes the promised time..."

 _'...upon us...'_

"One who... was never to be..."

 _'...who ...was...'_

"The embodiment... of the alternate..."

 _'...the alternate...'_

Weiss felt her heart racing in her chest. A feeling of dread was welling up inside her, as if an eldritch beast clawing it's way out. The ghostly whispers in her mind were growing in volume and clarity. She felt arms around her shoulders, a hand entered her line of view, but she felt none of it.

 _'We are...close now...'_

 _'Destroy the...feelings of...'_

 _'Fear, pain unto prosperity...'_

She was becoming number and number. Her body... it wasn't her own...

 _'They bound one... and awakened one...'_

 _'Upon four... his fate was sealed...'_

 _'Lay the light... descend the darkness...'_

Dizziness. She was feeling incredibly sleepy, almost impossibly so. The world of her dreams was before her, beckoning with open arms.

 _'The two with... the mark of His...'_

 _'Hear the call of they... who seek...'_

 _'Your own call...rest in joy...'_

"Weiss? Weiss!" a muffled voice cried out. The things around her tightened their grip. Her mouth was moving on its own, the words inaudible.

 _'Resist not... his touch...'_

 _'We from whence... he came...'_

 _'The two fall to one...'_

Her vision was darkening. Weiss could feel nothing. Her emotions were dulled. She couldn't be afraid even if she'd wanted to be.

 _'A watcher...within worlds...'_

 _'Second before...the first coming...'_

 _'He is known as...chaos reborn...'_

The darkness took her.

* * *

Weiss collapsed against Ruby, saying no more, her weight causing the crimsonette to fall backwards onto the carpeted floor. Heart racing, she pushed the heiress off her and pulled herself into a kneeling position. Weiss laid there, the slow breathing telling her that the heiress was... asleep? How?

Ruby was so scared. Just after Weiss had told her that Blake was saying the same things as her 'voices' were, she'd just stood there. Ruby had wandered over to her, and she heard Weiss speaking, at the same time as Blake, and the words were the same! She'd tried to hold her, to help her, but she hadn't moved, and then-

She needed to get help. Right now.

She bolted out of the door, not caring about the fact that she was still in her pyjamas.

Straight away, barely two steps out the door, she collided with none other than Professor Ozpin.

It was like hitting a brick wall. Ruby jumped and stepped back. He had his hand on the shoulder of Professor Goodwitch, who had her eyes closed, in the same manner as Weiss, murmuring words.

"Professor! I'm sorry!" Ruby babbled, sure that a scolding now was not what she needed. Ozpin didn't look angry though, he looked... was he worried?

"Ms Rose. Is there something you need at this hour?" Ozpin asked, keeping a firm grip on the shoulder of Goodwtich, who seemed to be struggling a little, determined to go forward. Was she like Weiss?

"Um, yes actually." Ruby said, deciding to guess that this was the same thing. "Two of my teammates are like Miss Goodwitch, and I don't know what to do! Weiss was so scared before they fell asleep, and they're saying things I don't understa-"

"They're saying things?" Ozpin repeated. There was a pause, and Ruby had the feeling she was being checked for any lie by the old headmaster. "I see. Please return to your dorm room, and I will come soon."

With that, he moved swiftly up the corridor, leading his sleep-walking colleague out of sight. Ruby, doing as she was told, retreated back inside the dorm room.

Once inside the dark room, she could hear the voices of Weiss and Blake once again, saying the same words, only this time, they were a bit louder.

Ignoring them, she scooped up Weiss in her arms, moving her over to the bed, before laying her down and pulling the covers over the heiress' pale body. If there was one thing she could do, it was make sure that Weiss was safe.

But there wasn't anything she knew that would stop those... voices that Weiss had been talking about.

* * *

Following Ozpin's return, he had remained silent as Ruby explained the situation. Now, both were by Weiss' bedside. listening to the now complete words as the crimsonette pulled up a chair, offering it to Ozpin, who took it with a nod of thanks. Weiss had a pained expression on her face, and Ruby laid her hand on her shoulder, powerless to do anything.

"May I listen to her?" Ozpin asked.

"Sure." Ruby replied.

Ozpin leaned towards Weiss' mouth, which was murmuring complete sentences now, and Ruby copied him.

"Come forth, the lord of creation..."

"Within a nightmare made real..."

"Take the place of the false monarch..."

"Fallen, rise with him now..."

"Unto the world, impart your change..."

"Unveil your fantasies upon the stage..."

"Let none stand in your path to eternity..."

Ruby looked up at Ozpin.

"This does not bode well." he said. "How long have these two been doing this?"

"I don't know, maybe ten minutes?" Ruby replied. Why was that important?

"Tell me, are you familiar with the tale of the Night Walkers?" Ozpin asked, his gaze still on Weiss.

"No." Ruby replied honestly.

"It is not a tale many hear." Ozpin explained, clasping his hands in his lap. "Long ago, a young man, youthful and gold-hearted, wished to become the strongest in the land, in order to keep it peaceful from those who would do them harm. He grew stronger and stronger, training tirelessly under warriors and sorcerers alike, until he was at the peak of what mankind could achieve. He was the strongest man alive, able to best any in combat or sorcery. But people grew jealous of his strength, and among them, a very clever, very devious warlock."

"What did he do?" Ruby asked, her attention on the old headmaster. Normally, she would have loved this story, but here and now, she needed to be serious. Ozpin didn't do things without a reason.

"The warlock had only one thing that the hero did not. An ability to make anyone sufficiently powerful enough a deity, except himself. He knew that this man would be strong enough, but the warlock knew of a way to be rid of him for good. He approached the man, and confessed of his ability, making himself seem a friend, an admirer. Thrice he won the man's trust, until, at last, he cast the spell. The hero became a god." Ozpin continued.

"So what happened?" Ruby egged him on.

"But part of the spell was an imprisonment." Ozpin said with a bitter smile. "The newly born god was trapped in a magical prison, never to see anyone, never to talk to anyone, until he was released. The warlock knew he would be released eventually as the hero's own power grew, but he knew he had won. Ages passed, many millions of years passed, and yet the god persevered. Yet the god was no longer golden-hearted, no longer wished for peace. From within his prison, the darkness seeped into his heart, and he became corrupted. Nobody knows what he'll do when he exits his prison now. He entered it a god, but when he leaves, he will be a dark god, just like the Warlock knew he would. In the end, he got the proverbial last laugh."

"What does this have to do with Weiss and Blake?" Ruby asked, jumping despite herself when Ozpin's gaze finally met her own.

"I am glad you asked, Ruby. The rest of the story goes like this. As the dark god now searches for ways to release himself, pieces of his power manifest on other people, while they are asleep. Their eyes close, their bodies lie still, and then move. They move and talk like other people, can even see, but they are asleep. The Night Walkers, as they are now known, move around, completing some hidden motive for their master, before waking up, as if nothing ever happened. Can you see now where this tale is relevant?"

"So this god... he's now evil... is doing this to Weiss and Blake? Isn't it just a story?" Ruby muttered confusedly. She heard a light chuckle from Ozpin.

"Evil is not the right word." Ozpin commented. "He's dark. There's a profound difference, Ruby. Where once he was peaceful, seeking only peace, now his mind is addled, to whatever extent is anyone's guess. He seeks escape, but what he will do with the world once he is released will likely be different from complete peace, unless he has somehow resisted through the ages. And in this world, Ruby, a story could just as easily have been as real as you or I. But that is not important right now."

"You're right, Oz. It isn't." Vade's voice sounded out from above. Ruby jumped and looked up, to see him perched on her bed, which was swaying a little.

"Vade?" Ruby hissed. "What are you doing here?"

"Answering a call from an old friend, way past office hours." Vade replied with a barely stifled yawn. "And here was me thinking that after twenty years of silence, I would never hear from you."

"There was a reason for this silence." Ozpin replied, sternly, and Ruby felt a flash of ice down her back at his tone. Had Vade done something to anger Ozpin? And they'd known each other for twenty years. Vade hissed softly at his words, slowly slipping off Ruby's sheets, landing lightly on the carpet below, eyes locked with Ozpin in an icy, crimson stare.

"Just as there was a reason for my actions back then." Vade retorted. "Now, do you want my help or not?"

"Only if it doesn't result in the death of so many innocents this time." Ozpin responded harshly. "I require assistance in diagnosing the cause of Ms Schnee and Ms Belladonna's sleep talking. Something I hear you have experience of as of late. You will be paid, of course."

For Ruby's part, she kept out of it. There was something between Ozpin and Vade, for sure, but what, Ruby almost didn't want to know.

"Oz, being in your company again is enough payment." Vade replied, stepping past the older man. "You know, I actually enjoyed seeing you again."

"A feeling that, most unfortunately, is not mutual." Ozpin said. Vade rolled his eyes at Ruby and crouched over the body of Weiss, listening. A minute passed, and he did not raise his head. For Ruby, sitting in silence, hearing nothing but those same words, that minute was an eternity. A second had passed before Vade lifted his head.

"Interesting." he said, more to himself than to either her or Ozpin. "So she's one of them." He retreated from Weiss' bedside, turning to face them. "Welp, she's been marked by the Night Walker phenomenon. So has Miss Bella-whatever." he said, pointing at Blake's bed.

"Meaning?" Ozpin asked. Ruby was feeling really uncomfortable now. She'd never seen Ozpin or Vade like this, cold anger and borderline hate for one another.

"Meaning that you, my good man, have been checkmated." Vade responded with a cruel smile.

"I'm sorry?" Ozpin asked. Ruby stayed silent, staring at Vade.

"Check. Mate." Vade repeated slowly, as if stating the obvious. "I don't know why you called me in the first place, Oz, but you know you lost the moment Glynda joined the Night Walkers."

"So why come?" Ozpin countered. "Why come when you know all the deeds you've done?" At this, Vade gave a quiet chuckle.

"Jeez, you make me seem like the bad guy." he replied quietly, before his mouth made an 'o', as if he'd realized something. "Wait, don't tell me you think it was me who killed Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai?"

Wait. Mercury was dead now too?! And Ozpin thinks it was Vade?

"I don't think you did, I know you did, _old friend_." Ozpin stated, the last two words with obvious sarcasm. "You've additionally been meddling with my students, tampering with many of them, not just this team. Many fall in your web of lies, and my staff have been picking up the pieces."

Ruby was in disbelief. Vade, the man she thought she knew, the one she was going to start calling a friend, he-

"So that's how you see me." Vade responded. "Very well." He turned around. "I missed those times with you, Ozpin, but you will see just how far I fell. How far I'm still falling. You think I betrayed you? Tch. Enjoy my master's rebirth."

Without another word, he vanished, leaving a deadly silence in his wake.


	17. Chapter 17

**Got another short one for this one, but writer's block decided to smack me in the face again. Also, got a few other things coming up in a couple of months that I need to watch for. It's nothing big, but it is harder to focus now. That being said, I won't let it delay me.**

 **Let's begin, and turn up the heat!**

* * *

Aya laid in bed with her Master. Father had said not to worry when he'd left, that she was to stay with Master and defend him.

She stretched out with her legs, laying them across the armour she knew was covering his own, as she wrapped her arms around his torso. She wouldn't normally have been doing this, but she'd seen Father doing this too, and he'd said the closer he was to Master, the faster he healed his hurts. So she copied him.

It had been about a minute since the Master had stopped whispering. Now, nothing but the occasional crackle from the white lights disturbed the silence.

It was peaceful.

How long was it now before the Master woke up?

Father had mentioned something about two keys that Master would need. First, the Master would be a Night Walker once the last piece of the puzzle was in place for them, then these keys would truly awaken them. What were they?

She remembered the riddle that Father had given her, when she'd asked.

 _'What is most precious to the one who has it? And what is most precious to the one who doesn't have its counterpart?'_

She had no clue. Maybe she wasn't meant to know.

Aya didn't mind as much. Some things hurt to know.

She felt a hand patting her head softly, and smiled into the armoured chest of her master.

"How goes..." she took a light breath, running out already, "...it, Father?"

Another arm snaked around her body. Her father didn't answer. She reached out and grasped the hand now holding her.

It was armoured?

Aya looked up to where Master's head was.

A gold, helmeted head stared back at her, the pitch black visor impenetrable, until it tilted to the right a little, resuming her surprisingly soft pats on the head.

"Master?" Aya called out softly. A pause. Then it nodded, though from the position Aya was in, it looked more like a jerk of the head. She could feel it moving now, the arm around her gently leaving her, Master's chest slowly slipping out from underneath her. She squirmed up to where the pillows were, popping out from under the duvet just as the Master left it. He stood up, slowly, before stretching his arms out sideways, then up, in a movement resembling the hands of a clock.

He then turned and knelt by the bedside, only a soft clink of his knee hitting the floor sounding out in the room. Aya reached out a hand, and he took it slowly in his grip of plated steel.

"How are... you feeling?" Aya asked him, as she felt his fingers gently squeeze her own. He released one of his hands and held it in a thumbs up gesture. "That's... good."

The master pointed at her, tilting his head.

"I'm... fine... just a bit... tired." Aya replied. The other hand let go, and she watched him, withdrawing her hand under the duvet. He reached over and patted her head once again, before reaching and pulling the other pillows towards her, shifting her slightly as he tucked her in gently, no movement overly quick or rough. Once he was done, Aya was as snug as a bug in a rug, and then some. "Thank you." she said quietly, and he nodded, before turning away from her.

Aya closed her eyes as she heard her father's voice.

"So you still have a soft spot, master." Vade said. "Welcome to your world."

A low hiss was the last thing she heard.

* * *

Weiss awoke slowly, as if waking up from a deep sleep. People were talking.

"...even if you didn't, you still did last night!" she heard Ruby saying.

"Both of you, calm down." Yang's stern voice. "Ruby, what were Weiss and Blake saying?"

Weiss blinked a few times to clear her vision, deciding that now was the time to speak up.

"I think we were saying the same stuff, last night, Blake." Weiss said, sitting up, greeted by the sight of all three of her teammates. Ruby was in a chair, a pouting face on her that, while cutely childish, also filled Weiss with a small level of irritation at the source. Blake's face mirrored Weiss' thoughts, and Yang looked annoyed too. The former's pout vanished when she turned to see Weiss awake, shortly before she vaulted into the heiress' arms. She patted Ruby gently on the back as Ruby buried her face into the heiress' neck.

"Weiss, what's going on?" Yang asked, moving into her field of view, a look of annoyance on her face.

"I honestly don't know, Yang." Weiss responded. She was a little surprised at the lack of fear in her heart at talking to Yang when she was like this, but really, she was just tired. "I was hearing things last night, then Ruby came in and told me Blake was sleep-talking the same stuff that I was hearing. I went, and listened." She met Blake's amber eyes, seeing an almost searching look upon her. "You were, Blake. After that, nothing."

"She passed out." Ruby continued, looking up and at their two teammates. "I got her back into bed, and went to find someone. I ran into Ozpin, who came in here after taking Goodwitch somewhere. She was sleepwalking, and saying the same things as you and Weiss!"

"I never sleep-talked before now, thought." Blake said, resigned, turning away.

"You guys haven't heard the rest!" Ruby looked very adamant to Weiss' eyes. "When Ozpin came in, he listened to the words you were saying. He told me about this story for children, and about how it was connected, then Vade shows up and-"

"What?" Weiss interrupted, drawing Ruby's frightened eyes. "What was he doing here?"

"Ozpin knows him." Ruby answered, slowing down a bit. "Him and Ozpin used to be friends, but something happened. Anyway, Ozoin called him to help, but then when he listened, he said that... that you and Blake were marked by something called 'the Night Walker phenomenon'. When Ozpin asked him what he meant, he said that Ozpin had been 'checkmated', whatever that means."

Checkmated? Vade had said that to Ozpin? So they were enemies?

"But the worst part is what he said next. Do you guys remember Emerald and Mercury from that team that came from another school?" Ruby asked. Weiss remembered, and recollection flared in Yang's eyes. She saw Blake's bow twitch. "Vade killed them both. Ozpin said so."

"He murdered them?" Weiss said, in disbelief. Vade was many things, but Weiss wouldn't have taken him for a killer. Overly creepy, maybe, but not a murderer.

"Yes." Ruby replied, her eyes showing fear beyond what Weiss had ever seen. "He then said that he didn't know why Ozpin had called for him, and when Ozpin said that he'd been doing... something with us, he said 'enjoy my master's rebirth'. I don't know what that means, but-"

"I'm going to see Ozpin." Yang announced, turning away. "We all deserve a few answers for this."

"I'm going too." Weiss piped up.

"No, I'll go with Yang." Blake said. Weiss turned her eyes away from Ruby just as the crimsonette hugged her tightly again, and glared at Blake. The faunus' eyes met her own with a steely look that reflected no opportunity for negotiation.

"Why not me?" Weiss asked, as Yang exited the door with a nod to Blake. She approached the bedside and crouched so that they were eye to eye. There were red lines in hers.

"Help Ruby calm down. I don't think she slept last night." Blake replied with a soft voice. The tension, the preparedness to engage in verbal battle, the intense urge to defy her teammates words, all of it seemed to just melt away when she realized Blake's true feelings for her relationship with Ruby.

She supported them.

Even if she wouldn't say it directly.

"Thank you." Weiss said. Receiving a nod from Blake, she swiftly vanished through the door, intent on catching up with Yang. Her attention then turned to the sudden wet patch on her shoulder. Ruby was crying? "What's wrong?"

"It's just, you..." Ruby squeaked, midway through a sob. "I'm so happy you're okay!"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Weiss asked confusedly.

"W-when you started saying stuff, and then you collapsed, I-" the crimsonette stammered, cut off by an involuntary yawn. "I was so worried about you, I couldn't sleep!"

Ah. So that's what it had been. Weiss wrapped her arms around the little dolt, HER dolt, patting her gently on the back.

"There, there." Weiss said in a reassuring tone as Ruby cried, holding her close, using the only way she really knew how to comfort someone.

* * *

"I'm okay."

Vade watched as the circular window into RWBY's dorm collapse into aura energy and vanish. He was stood just outside their bedroom within the nexus of the Dark Library. His golden-suited master lowered the arm that had been outstretched towards the dimensional window.

"You have done well, Akikaen." the master intoned, the voice mechanical yet light in tone. "All is proceeding as the Alternate would have wanted."

Akikaen. His true name.

Something only three other beings actually knew.

It had been a while since he'd heard it.

The master folded his arms and gazed upon Vade through the black visor of his helmet, part of a suit of armour that was as much a prison as it was protection.

"We will need to stop RWBY at some point." Vade said, remembering his recent dreams, combined with the knowledge gleamed to him by his own semblance. "Now that Ozpin knows of my plan, he will send them after us, presumably because he knows that they are connected to our plan. If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say pinning them down would cause him to send the teachers Goodwitch, Port and Oobleck after us. That is when she will strike, and when we follow."

"We must prevent RWBY from being overly injured. The moment they set foot into our domain, this will occur." came the reply.

"We will strike first." Vade assured. "I intend to take down Weiss, then follow up with Yang. Aya can handle Ruby and Blake."

"There is no need." Master replied. "You are to disable Weiss only. Aya may do the same to Ruby. I will face Yang and Blake."

"But, are you ready, Master?" Vade asked, worriedly.

"Do not be afraid, Akikaen." the Master replied, giving a tilt of the head. "Even if I am sealed, I have found ways to use my power."

"That is... good, Master." Vade said. "They will strike tomorrow. We must counter before they even leave Beacon. Thankfully, they will naturally separate."

A keening cry echoed from behind the pair, and both turned around.

"We're ready too, Master!" came Aya's voice, followed by another cry.

"Your pawns will be easy prey for our rook, queen and knight." Vade growled.

* * *

Ruby looked up as Yang and Blake walked through the door of their dorm room. Wiping her eyes on her sleeve, she watched as the second half of Team RWBY approached the bed. Blake's face was emotionless, Yang's too, but her crimson eyes gave away her sister's anger.

"Ruby. Weiss." Blake addressed them, as she sat down on a nearby chair. "We have a mission from Ozpin. Something that you two know more about than us."

"We're going to find Vade." Yang said, her visage contorting into a snarl. "In his Dark Library."


	18. Chapter 18

**Heya guys! Here's the next chapter, and with it, I've got a little announcement to make.**

 **I've released a new story, called RWBY: The Darkest Fantasies. For those of you who enjoy smut and different fetishes, this is the story for you guys. I'm still not entirely sure what pairings are going to be in this one, but it will have a lot of smut, a lot of lemons, and it'll probably be where I purge myself of all my ideas for 18+ scenes. The only real plot will be the developing relationships between characters, once I decide which they're going to be. It'll be updated weekly at the same time as any other book I have on the go, like this one!**

 **With that done, let's get moving!**

* * *

"Psst."

Ruby shifted in her sleep. She felt something poke her cheek. She groaned a little.

"Psst."

Was that Weiss? Or someone else?

She slowly cracked her eyes open, only to be greeted by a blue-eyed stare.

Resisting her body's urge to jump in surprise, she took her eyes off the blue pits.

It was definitely Aya. She looked upon her with a smile, as if happy to see her.

"Glad I... found you... Ruby." Aya whispered.

"What are you doing here?" Ruby asked quietly, trying not to wake Weiss, who was cuddling her from behind. Why was she here, in their dorm room?

"Looking for... you." Aya said. She was just about a couple of paces away.

She held out a small hand.

"Take... my hand." she instructed.

No seeing any reason not to, Ruby grasped the tiny hand.

With a jolt, her surroundings changed in a flash, going from comfortable bed to hard, black floor!

Ruby sat up in a flash, taking in her new surroundings, immediately letting go of Aya's hand.

Black walls, floors, a white mist around them, a couple of shelves, white flamed torches in brackets... they were in the Dark Library!

Vade's home!

"That's... better." Aya said, in her normal voice now that they were out of the dorm, sitting down next to Ruby on the glass-like floor. "You... okay?"

"Fine, but why did you bring me here?" Ruby asked.

"I wanted... to talk to... you. Father... doesn't know... we're here." Aya replied, taking breaths midway through her sentences. "Father... said not to... see you anymore... is something... wrong?"

"Aya, do you know someone called Ozpin?" Ruby asked her, deciding to test how much she actually knew. Her young face fell at the mention of the name.

"That man... is an enemy." Aya replied. "If I see... him at any... time... Father wants me... to tell... him immediately."

Aya thought Ozpin was an enemy?

"Why is he an enemy?" Ruby pressed.

"He doesn't... like Father." Aya responded. "He fights... whenever I see... them together. I also... know about... his plan... with you... and Father."

She KNEW? Did that mean that Vade knew that RWBY would be moving to capture him?

"Are you... going to... come for us?" Aya asked, and Ruby noticed that her eyes looked watery. "Would you... fight my Father... my Master... even me... for him?" She was backing away from Ruby now, and from her angle, Ruby saw a defenseless girl. What was she supposed to do here? Her team was given this mission from Ozpin himself! But Aya was a friend!

"No, I won't." Ruby lied, deciding to make sure that she would be spared some of the pain, until tomorrow. Tears fell down Aya's face however, and she moved back even further, the mist of the Dark Library coiling around her.

"You're... lying." Aya said tearfully, seemingly holding back a sob. "I have... my father's... semblance... you know? That's how... I can do the... things he... does." Ruby stood up too, realizing as she did so that she had no idea how to get out of here and back to Beacon. "But I guess... that's the way... things are. Humans... only care about... things that relate... to them... and never think about... anyone else. That's the way... humans and faunus... have always been. You would... get closer to the... people at Beacon... rather than us... because we're less relevant. I... get it."

"Aya, I'm-" Ruby tried to say.

"Don't bother!" Aya screamed, cutting Ruby off. "It was... the right move... after all... bringing you here! Now!"

Two strong, armoured arms suddenly wrapped themselves around her torso, and hauled her above the floor! Ruby struggled hard, trying desperately to break the sudden vice-grip, but whoever was holding her was far too strong. Aya approached as she kicked out, struggling, doing anything she could.

It was for naught, and Ruby watched as Aya reached her, and held out a hand that was enveloped in blue energy. Her left eye was shimmering blue even as she wiped away her tears.

"So... the friend of... my enemy... who's also my... friend... is really... just another enemy." Aya said, before tapping Ruby's bare foot.

A jolt of electricity shot through Ruby's body at her touch, and her mind went numb, blanking out at her touch.

* * *

"Ruby! Ruby!" Weiss called out.

She stood in the courtyard of Beacon, searching for Ruby.

She'd just been awoken to a loud cracking sound, and Ruby had been gone. Unsure of where she was, Weiss had gotten up, put her clothes on, and ventured out of the dorm. Ruby hadn't been anywhere, not in the weapons servicing area, the training arena, heck she had even checked the cafeteria.

Now she was out here, still searching. This wasn't right. Ruby wouldn't be out of their dorm at close to one'o'clock in the morning!

"What's up, Weiss?"

Weiss whirled around at the sound of the familiar voice. Vade stood there, arms folded, leaning against the statue in the center of the courtyard. Without hesitation, Weiss withdrew her rapier. She never left without it.

"How'd you get here?" she growled. Vade looked affronted, though Weiss knew that face was fake.

"Me? I just came here!" Vade responded. "It's almost like someone wants my head, oh wait, someone does." Vade gave a smile that sent shivers down Weiss' spine, his right eye glowing its familiar crimson. "Welp, guess I have to take out the trash headed for me."

"TRASH?! We're far more than you!" Weiss shouted, very offended at his remark. Vade gave a quiet chuckle.

"Big words when you have your team with you. They do say the whole is greater than the sum of its parts." Vade responded. "And it's true. I admire your team's strength, the ability to become something from nothing. But then, when you aren't combining to become something, I think you know what that means, Weiss. You're nothing compared to me."

"Says the guy who lost to our 'nothing', Yang." Weiss countered with a sneer. Another chuckle.

"And that's why it pays to be a good actor." Vade replied. "It means you get to show people what they thought was your power, whereas in reality, it's something completely different." He gave a laugh at that, pushing himself off the locker, and facing Weiss directly. "Pretty convincing anger, wasn't it?"

Weiss had her doubts. It had looked real, and his powers looked real too. His shield HAD deflected Yang's attacks as well.

"But enough about that." He leapt across the grass so that he was before Weiss. "Looking for someone?"

Weiss heart skipped a beat.

Vade stretched out his left hand, which was glowing with a purple aura, very different from his usual red.

"Be thankful my Master actually gave me the ability to do this." Vade remarked, before snapping his finger. A circular window appeared in mid air, crackling with the same purple energy that surrounded his hand. Behind it sat-

"Ruby!" Weiss cried out, getting closer. It was too. She was being held by someone in a golden suit of armour. And she was struggling, bucking against the grip, kicking out, flailing. As she watched, a little girl, Aya most likely, moved in close and touched Ruby's foot with a blue glowing hand. Ruby instantly jolted and went limp, and struggled no more. Just before the window collapsed, she saw her lover being dragged by the one in gold. She rounded on Vade as he smiled cruelly.

"Gee, I think she might just be... not here." he commented. Weiss felt fury take her as she realized that Ruby had indeed been kidnapped. "Time to show you just how puny you really are. You might want to look behind you at some point." Vade remarked, his right eye glowing bright red.

No. Weiss kept her eyes on Vade. No way was she falling for that-

A wet smacking sound was all she heard, and a sharp blow to the back of the head.

Darkness took her before she even fell to the ground.

* * *

As Vade lifted the unconscious heiress up onto his shoulder, he marveled at how easy this had been. Just like that, before they'd even had to attack, two of them had fallen right into their arms. Once Master-

"Going somewhere, old friend?"

Vade wheeled around. Sure enough, he saw him. Ozpin, man of the hour even in this late one.

So much for being easy.

He was walking towards Vade, cane in hand, a very angry look on his normally serene face.

"Yup. Job's done." Vade replied cautiously, watching as the headmaster closed in. He summoned a book and let it hover beside him, saying "Back up." as he did so. Ozpin was unfazed, and kept coming. He threw Weiss backwards, letting the heiress' body hit the grass with a light thud.

"You have the gall to interfere with my students, and now to kidnap them?" Ozpin asked, his voice very dangerous indeed, coming to within arm's reach of Vade before halting. Vade let his own anger rise to the surface. The nerve of him!

"Oh, I'm sure sending them over to try and do that to me wouldn't have resulted in the same thing happening to them anyway." Vade hissed. "Getting desperate against me already, hm, Oz?"

"You have no idea what you're dealing with." Ozpin responded harshly. "Toy with the future all you want, but NEVER touch my students. Are we clear?"

"Nope." Vade retorted, taking a step closer. "I WILL continue and I WILL save us all. If you hadn't fought me, none of-"

CRACK!

Vade felt his body fly into a stone wall of the courtyard, before landing on the ground, hard. He tasted blood in his mouth where he'd bitten his tongue, his jaw numb in the place where it had been whacked. He slowly rose, looking at Ozpin, feeling his mind fill with hate as he lowered his cane.

"So that's the game we're playing, is it?" Vade replied, spitting out blood onto the pristine pavement of the courtyard. "In that case, why don't you pick on someone your own size?" He raised his hand, letting his aura flow into it, making the call he knew would summon his savior, his cause to draw breath.

Sure enough, the Master appeared before him, facing Ozpin, whose harsh glare suddenly became less sure of itself. Vade gave a harsh laugh as the Master silently took an unarmed combat stance, purple aura flashing menacingly.

"Look familiar? This is the one who you turned your back on, twenty years ago." Vade said, walking over to where he'd dropped Weiss, lifting her up and watching as Ozpin's eyes focused on him. "I wouldn't do that. My master has no reason to fight you. Don't give him one." He looked over, feeling his master's eyes on him too. The master pointed to its chin, and he knew what the gesture meant. "It didn't happen in front of you." he replied. "Yes, I got hurt, but I can handle it. If he hurts me any more though..." he continued with a warning tone.

He walked back over to the Master and put a hand on his armoured shoulder.

"Seems you've got enough sense in your head to not try your luck." Vade poked at Ozpin. "Maybe now you'll realize just how far ahead we are compared to you."

With that, he let his gifted semblance warp him, his master, and the fallen Weiss back into the Dark Library.


	19. Chapter 19

**Small delay on this chapter, apologies for that. Studies are starting to pick up again, what can you really do? Still, I want to address something real quick.**

 **While I appreciate the guest reviews, it irritates me to no end that I can't reply to them. I'm sure you've heard this all before, but create temporary accounts PLEASE, so that I can respond to you. I'm not about to do an answer thing in the A/N section here, it's not the way I do things. Just make those accounts. It literally takes three minutes at most.**

 **Rant over.**

* * *

"Ruby? Ruby!"

Ruby cracked open her eyes, feeling the shiver of her body at the after-effects of Aya's shock. She recognized Weiss' voice instantly, and turned to her left, looking around her inexplicably paralyzed arm. Sure enough, Weiss was there, though what was happening instantly filled her with fright.

Weiss arms and legs were subsumed by a purple, gooey substance that trapped her feet and hands. It curled around her, refusing to budge against any movement. She was watching Ruby with an equally frightened expression. Ruby looked up, and felt her heart drop as she saw the purple stuff around her own hands, binding her in a thick, slimy rope. Looking down to her feet, Ruby found her shoes trapped in a puddle, and was unable to even move.

"Thank god you're awake." Weiss cried out.

"What happened to you?" Ruby asked, turning her gaze back on her love.

"I met Vade in the middle of the night." she replied with an anger plain in her voice. "I was looking for you after I woke up, and ran into him when I looked outside. He said something about knowing about our plan, then about how he wasn't using any of his true power against Yang, and when I was going to fight, he knocked me out with something, if the soreness in the back of my head is anything to go on. What about you? Where were you?"

"Aya came to see me before you woke up. She took me here, used her dad's semblance to teleport." Ruby explained, trying to conceal the guilt of knowing that if she hadn't trusted Aya, none of this would have happened. "She asked me if I was okay, then told me she knew about our plan. Then she..." Ruby took a breath, feeling tears well in her eyes at the memory.

"What?" Weiss asked. "What did she do?" Ruby looked away in shame.

"She asked me if we were going to go after Vade. I said no, but she had ALL of Vade's semblances, and she knew I was lying." Ruby continued. "She said that she... that humans would only care about those closest to them. I think she wanted to be friends with us, but now she knows we're in league with Ozpin. She said 'now', then I was grabbed from behind. After that, she said that the friend of an enemy who's also her friend is just another enemy, and zapped me with something. Everything's a blank from there."

"Ruby, she's just trying to mess with you. Hey!" Weiss shouted. "Look at me." Ruby complied, looking into steely blue eyes. "Don't let it get to you, Ruby. We will get out of here at some point. Get back to Yang and Blake."

"All correct, up to this point." came a metallic voice. Ruby looked up, to see the golden armoured... man? Woman? Ruby really couldn't tell. It was standing before them, arms crossed, the pitter patter of something hitting the floor. Focusing on the source, Ruby realized that purple slime was dripping from the back of this suit.

"Who are you?" Weiss asked pointedly. "Let us out!"

"Not yet." the mysterious figure replied. "And to answer your query, I am the end time. The physical form of an age whose foundations are fading into a new age."

"What are you saying?" Weiss pressed. Ruby decided to stay quiet. It'd be better if she let Weiss do the talking.

"Exactly what was spoken prior." the stranger responded. "You should know that two women are, at present, doing battle with my two acolytes." Two women? Were they Yang and Blake? "They will lose, and be brought before me, be bound in the same binds that you are bound by."

"They won't lose." Weiss retorted. "One of your acolytes even lost to one of these women prior to this."

"You misunderstand your position, Weiss Schnee." the metallic voice calmly countered. "We are currently in my domain, Kurai Raiburari. She may have lost in your Beacon, but here, I would not be surprised if your two 'heroes' fall to the very library they fight within."

Wait a minute.

Ruby tuned out of the conversation for a second. The... guy, that's what she'd call it... said that 'she' lost. Who was 'she'? Was it Aya?

"Our teammates are much stronger than you think." Weiss replied.

"Enough prattle." their captor affirmed, getting closer, each footfall sending a vibration through their bounds. "I have no intention of holding you two for long."

Ruby's heart missed a beat. He was going to free them?

"In fact, truth be told, I disapprove of this plan." Gold said. Yeah. Gold fit him, until Ruby could come up with a better name. He had enough on his armour. "Yet Akikaen's strategy carries much worth, once our true target is drawn into the open, and the bounds are severed. Endure captivity for a little longer."

"Why should I... we, believe you?" Weiss asked harshly. Gold shook his armoured head.

"It matters little whether you do or don't. Belief in my truthfulness is not fundamental to our success, nor is deception. You may choose what to believe for yourselves." Gold responded. "All of the pieces are already in place, the two that must die are dead. Once the last move is made, I will have no further need to keep you, and nor will the one within this suit."

"Who is a completely different person from the one you're talking to, Weiss." Vade growled from out of sight. Gold moved aside to reveal him, who had the limp bodies of both Blake and Yang in his arms. Aya stood beside him, her face impassive, no emotion shown. Even though Ruby was watching her, mentally begging her to look at her, she seemed to be staring at a spot in-between her and Weiss.

A stab of guilt shot through Ruby as she turned away. Wet, slapping sounds could be heard from her left, and she knew that Blake and Yang were likely being strung up next to them.

It was over. They'd all been taken by Vade in the end.

* * *

Weiss turned her head just in time to see her love's fall in defeat. She could see the tears in her eyes, and honestly, Weiss couldn't blame her. They were meant to be the team that excelled at everything they did, but for all their strength and skill, here was a threat they couldn't best. She glared at the three now before them, Vade, Aya, and the man in gold armour.

Vade walked back towards his master, turning and standing with his arms crossed, a victorious smirk on his face, one that made Weiss wish she could just reach out and punch him. Aya stood beside him, little arms wrapped around her father's leg, glaring threateningly with her glowing blue eye.

The one in gold was walking closer though. He was barely within an arm's reach now. The slime binding her coiled tighter around her, as if daring her to even try to strike him.

"So the whole collection is present. How quaint." he said, his metallic voice ringing in her ears at this distance. "Now, there is only one last action to take. Before everyone gets the peace they deserve."

Peace that everyone deserves? What did that mean?

"Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee." he continued. "You are the last keys."

Wait. They were the keys?

No...

"Oh, it's not what it seems." Vade added, stepping forward, not doing anything to dispel Weiss' sudden fear. "You don't even have to do anything. It's something you already have, something that simply being near will work, and something that our Master's been working on for some time."

As Weiss watched, the man in gold raised a hand between them, as if grasping a string attached to the pair of them.

"You love Ruby, don't you?" he asked.

"What's it to you?" Weiss retorted.

"What do you think it is?" the man queried, tilting his head.

"I..." Weiss fell silent. The man was getting closer, closer until his head was right in her face, the visor mere inches from her own head.

A deadly silence filled the air.

"Everything." the metallic voice hissed, before the man retreated, and held his hand once more between them. This time, it started to glow, with streams of white and red light coiling around each other, the sparkles dazzling Weiss' eyes.

And yet, as suddenly as it started, the light died, replaced with a blackness that surrounded the entirety of the man now, the gold barely shining through the dark, fog-like aura now surrounding him. As he stepped back, he clenched his fists, the aura swirling around him like a typhoon of blackness. But that wasn't the only thing happening.

Vade was holding his hands out in front of him, and there was fire. A flaming aura was surrounding him, too! Sweeping her gaze over to Aya, she saw her blue aura swirling around her own little arms in whirlpools of sleek, blue power. Whatever their leader had did, Vade and Aya were being affected as well!

A crash could be heard outside the room.

All three turned their heads.

They turned, without a word, and marched towards the door, each moving in perfect harmony, even the normally fragile Aya.

Leaving them behind.

Weiss wanted to yell, to call out to someone, anyone, the people making the commotion outside, to come and help!

But something prevented her from even making a peep.

* * *

As Vade, Aya, and the master exited through the pale, white door of the Dark Library's bedroom, they were greeted by one of many rooms made for the purpose of housing entrances to other rooms. Three more doors were in the perfectly square room, its style the same as any other room.

Only one thing was out of place in here, something that all three spotted.

"Greetings once again, Vade."

Ozpin stood in the center of the room, his visage bearing a harshness that most would have never seen play across his features. Several tears in his usual outfit were distinguishable, but otherwise, the old professor seemed no worse for wear.

Aya moved behind her father immediately upon seeing him, and Vade reached back and patted her. The Master stepped forward, in front of Vade, who nodded in appreciation. As Ozpin gazed upon him, he held his hands out, letting Ozpin see the black aura seeping out of him. His expression didn't change, but the eyes widened.

"Abandon hope of preventing my rebirth." the Master intoned.

"It's too late, Oz." Vade said, with a sad smile. "Checkmate."

"It doesn't have to be, Vade." Ozpin replied, his expression remaining the same inscrutable one he wore in situations like this. "We can still stop this together. Please, from one friend to another, don't do this. I came alone. There is no reason to keep doing this."

"You would rather let the calamity happen than stop it and make the future uncertain?" Vade asked, his expression turning to one of anger. "I bet you don't even know what my Master has in mind, do you? You never stopped to listen to the whispers of the Night Walkers, not even mine when I became one myself! Instead, when we were both entrusted with that knowledge, you would seek that end through all suffering?"

"It is an end that we know about!" Ozpin retorted, his voice giving way to his own emotions. "It is an end that sees us survive, both the Grimm and ourselves! Would you tear that away for the sake of saving lives?"

"Instantly." Vade responded. "And unfortunately, you saw fit to leave, to run away and teach than talk things out with me! You never found..." Vade's voice broke. "You never found out what happened to me. I lost the one trust I had, ten years past that time, when I realized that if you wanted something, if you truly cared about something, it was a care that no-one else shared!"

"What are you referring to?" Ozpin asked. "The day you sentenced three teams of hunters to death for the retrieval of your master's armour? Or the scheming and politicking around both myself and my colleagues to move it into your Dark Library? What was it you said? 'I didn't have a choice.' How dare you."

"Arg, I've had enough of you!" Vade yelled. "Fine, then I'll show you what really happened to me! What I've become!" His aura was crackling around him, and Aya skirted around the Master so that she stood by his other side, still watching her father with a subtle fascination.

"I may finally awaken fully. Now, none may halt me. My transcendence is nigh." the Master spoke, before a dread silence filled the room.

Light was flowing out of his body, a golden, soft, smooth light, burgeoning outward from the blackness. He clenched his fists and doubled over as the darkness billowed outward, coating him in a cloud of dense, black fog. It coalesced into a sphere, enveloping the man, hiding him from view. Then golden light flowed around it, like it was being sucked into the vortex that was the black sphere.

Bluish cracks appeared, as if in an egg.

Its whole surface shimmered.

A white flash filled the room.

CRASH!


	20. Chapter 20

**Heya guys, CCC here! Pressure's starting to pick up here, so after I close off this book with the epilogue, I'll most likely go dark for a bit. Nothing to worry about, just don't have as much time as I used to. I'll still be writing, don't get me wrong, just need to keep my studies up to date. Exams are around the corner, so gotta make sure I'm ready, you know?**

 **Anyways, let's roll. I'm sure you didn't come here to read my A/N's.**

* * *

"In the coldest of vacuums, where the blazing heat of passion dies, even the heart of the one with hope will freeze. An eternity of darkness and suffering, brought about only by the desire to save another being. You who endure both, rise from the shadows and look upon your new world!" Vade chanted, his voice gradually growing to a fevered pitch. Ethereal winds were drawing the very air they breathed into the vortex that was the black sphere. Blue-purple flames were shooting out of the cracks, which were expanding quickly, covering the whole in a nexus of blue, flaming lines. "Thunder forth, Kurokami, Chosen Avatar of the Dark Creator!"

The shell broke with a tumultuous CRASH!

Within the writing purple flames stood a man draped in black, black robes which fluttered around him like feathers, dark gold patterns embroidered on the fine silk. Dark blond hair flowed in a clear defiance of gravity, as if afloat in non-existent waters. Pale skin danced across a moderately handsome face, currently expressionless, his eyes gently shut, as if asleep. He had his hands outstretched sideways, fingers apart, within the flames as if they were but a stream of water.

Two metallic wings were stretching outwards from his back, each chrome feather reflecting the dark flames surrounding their owner. As the three watched, he opened his eyes, revealing shimmering, glowing orbs that radiated a pure golden glow. The fires surrounding him dimmed, forming a purplish aura which snaked and crackled around him as he lowered his hands, his wings retracting slightly.

"The dark god... Kurokami." Ozpin shakily stated, his face a rare image of hopelessness. "The one from the tale of the Night Walkers."

"Correct, in a sense." the man replied with a bitter smile, his voice light and calm, raising a hand and stretching it out before him. "It has been too long since I last tasted the free air." He flexed his fingers, twirling them this way and that, before lowering his pale arm and gazing at Ozpin with a neutral expression. "Have we met?"

"Not directly, Master." Vade answered, drawing the godly being's gaze into his own crimson eyes. "Upon my first mention of you, he... misunderstood your intent for this world. We fell into conflict because of it." He glared at Ozpin. "That's how he knows you."

"Interesting." Kurokami responded, also moving his own eyes back upon the old headmaster. "To think mortal fears were based upon the unknown over the ages, that a lack of knowledge bred fear in its place." He took a step towards Ozpin, a step that sent a small ripple of pure, white energy through the floor where his bare foot touched the glass of the Dark Library. "Allow me to put some of those doubts to rest, if I may. What would you have me tell you that would remove these unknown factors?"

Ozpin looked a little taken aback at his words.

"What do you intend for this world?" he asked quickly.

"Peace." Kurokami replied.

"How do you intend to achieve that?" Ozpin pressed.

"In the wake of your absence from Beacon, alongside Team RWBY, the assault on Vale has already begun." the dark god replied. "The attackers will be dealt with by my own hand. Following this, I will dispose of the one who lusts after the power of the Fall Maiden, Cinder Fall, and redistribute her power elsewhere. Then, I will send a message to the world, that their fears are misplaced. Yes," he continued as Ozpin's expression turned to one of shock, "I know of the path she wishes to take with this attack."

"So, aside from our 'attackers', the world has nothing to fear from you?" Ozpin asked quickly.

"Only those who have angered the Creator have anything to fear from me." the godly being replied. "You, and your students, are not among them. Currently, he wishes for the attackers' death, and nothing more."

There was a pause.

"What do you mean by 'the Creator'?" Ozpin queried.

"Didn't you get the memo?" Vade asked, also stepping forward, Aya imitating him. "His title was Avatar of the Dark Creator. The original from the story is still locked up, but Kuro is his way of altering events in the world. Through him, the Creator can affect anything in this world, but the one standing next to me is just a paintbrush, if you will, one wielded by the painter."

"An inelegant example, but accurate, my acolyte." Kurokami added. "Does this settle your fear?"

"If I may." Ozpin said, stepping towards the man, now only a couple of paces away from the man. Vade tensed up, but a nod from Kurokami made him relax.

"I wish to apologize for my misconception of your nature. Until now, my belief was that you would see the destruction of this world. I ask for forgiveness from you, and from your... acolyte." He made eye contact with Vade at this last, and the newcomer smiled calmly at Ozpin's words.

"Oh, Oz." Vade said slowly, his expression neutral. "This is what happens when you choose paranoia over a friend." His expression broke, and it became one of sadness, but also happiness at the same time. "I'm glad that you can see it now."

"You must understand the grounds I had. Please, Vade." Ozpin responded. The crimson eyed man let out a small chuckle, stepping past his master and daughter, until he was before Ozpin, looking up into the old man's eyes.

"Well, it hurt, not being able to talk to my best friend for twenty years." Vade replied, with a head tilt and classic smile. "But what are friends for? C'mon, Oz, let me back in. I've got nothing more to hide, no more moves to make. No more deaths to cause." He held out his hand, which was immediately taken in a hand shake.

"Thank you, Vade." Ozpin said appreciatively, as they broke contact.

"Oh, something you should know." Vade added, as he turned, and walked back to his master's side. "My real name isn't Vade."

"Oh?" Ozpin responded, surprised.

"That isn't the half of it. The Vade you knew died ten years ago." Vade explained, still with his back turned, to Ozpin's visibly mounting confusion. "When I learned of the White Fang's attack coming up, I went to take them on myself. As you might guess, they got the better of me, and cast me down. My master found my soul, allowed me to be reborn, and I've been confined to this form ever since, alongside my new twin sister." Red light started to flow around him... him? Her? It was like a crimson fire was crackling around him.

"I took this form to blend in." Aya said, her voice no longer breathy, no more pauses in-between words. "We're twin sisters now." Aya was glowing with her own blue light too, flowing around her as a stream of water might.

"Sisters?" Ozpin queried, still a look of shock upon his face. "But that means-"

"Assume your true forms." the godly being beside the pair instructed, cutting Ozpin off.

"As you wish, Master." both responded, before Vade spun around and locked eyes with Ozpin. "Prepare to have your mind blown."

The light surrounding them both grew brighter and brighter, soon enveloping the two in a light that burned the eyes, forcing Ozpin to duck his head down. Wind was howling... somehow inside the vast Dark Library.

"Vade? What?" Ozpin called out, confusedly.

"Hard to believe, isn't it?" a feminine voice, deep yet still unmistakably feminine, called out. The shining light slowly died, revealing Vade and Aya in their core appearances.

Where Vade and Aya once stood, now two women stood. Both had flowing silver hair which stroked their backs, their height matching their master. Pale, supple skin was visible, their colour coordinated kimono's displaying the same kind of golden symbols as their master. Slim, lithe bodies, no trace of fat on them at all. Their faces, so alike they could easily be mistaken for twins, subtly charming in their appearance. Both sported moderately sized busts too, nothing compared to some of the more developed students Ozpin had known, but still sizable.

The only thing different between them other than their outfits were their eyes. The one in Vade's spot had bright red eyes, looking like red candies, while the other sported cyan eyes that wouldn't look out of place fitted on a ring as gemstones. Both were smiling cheerily, but the red eyed one was tilting her head, just like Vade used to.

"Bet you didn't see this coming, did you?" the girl that was once Vade asked in a fluttery voice.

"I... can't say that I have." Ozpin responded after a pause. "This is your true form?"

"Yes." the other girl replied, her voice lower, less energetic than her sister.

"And I'm sorry I had to do this, but you see, we needed every advantage we could get if we wanted our Master in this world." the first girl said apologetically. "Once we were revived, I realized that I needed to assume my previous form to fit back into society. But now, at last, I get to show you what I really look like. The name, by the way, as of ten years ago," she added, holding up an index finger and winking, "is Akikaen, the Immortal Flame of the Dark Creator. But people can just call me Aki. I really don't mind."

"And you are?" Ozpin asked, tilting his head towards the blue-eyed girl, who until now had been posing as Vade's daughter, Aya.

"I'm Aoshio, Undying Tide of the Dark Creator, and Aki's twin sister." she replied with a bow, her tone a touch more serious, her strands of silver cast in front of her before it was flung back with a light flick of her hair, like a line into a lake. "Everyone calls me Shio. And our master is Kurokami, the Chosen Avatar of the Dark Creator."

"A misleading title, as I am sure you will agree." Kurokami said. "You may call me Kuro. Aki and Shio tell me that the shortening of a name makes it easier for mortal tongues."

"Aki, Ao and Kuro." Ozpin mused, drawing the exalted gaze upon him. "Red, blue and black, in the old tongue."

"Aki, let's go." Shio said, beckoning her sister with a finger. "We have work to do."

"What work?" Ozpin queried.

"Ending the White Fang attack before it even begins, of course." Aki replied, as if common knowledge. "Plus, you need to save Team RWBY. That's why you came to confront me, right?"

All three turned on their heels and walked away.

"I pity them." Ozpin heard Kuro mutter.

"Finally, we can do things our way." Shio muttered to her sister. "This will be fun."

* * *

Ruby hung from the suspension of the goo. She, and the rest of her team hung in silence as the dimensional window flashed once, before disappearing.

There was a moment of silence.

"He... he was a GIRL?!" Weiss yelled out.

"They were playing us for fools this whole time." Blake muttered. Sounds of a struggle emanated from behind her.

"We've got to get out!" Yang shouted, fighting against her own bonds. "They're going to-"

Ruby felt her front lurch forwards as the tentacles holding her hands and feet suddenly vanished, and she slammed against the ground, her cheek slapping painfully against the glassy floor. Grunts of pain from beside her told her that her team had met similar fates upon meeting the floor.

Too many things were rushing through her head right now.

Vade... no, Aki.

The god Kuro.

The fact that Aya was Shio, a twin sister.

All of this and more were flowing through her head. So many things had changed, it threatened to overwhelm her.

A hand on her back.

"Are you okay? Say something!"

A voice.

Weiss voice!

"I'm fine." she groaned, as she sat up. Weiss looked a little bit... scruffy. For the first time in her life, Weiss' hair wasn't all straight, her clothes weren't all smooth. Even as she pulled Ruby into a hug, she smelt something... nice. Was it Weiss' own scent?

"Yang, stop!" she heard Blake yell out from somewhere. "Ozpin's coming to get us."

A kiss on her cheek.

That was Weiss' kiss.

Ruby felt her body relax, even as her addled brain tried to keep up with everything that was happening.

One thing was for sure.

Things wouldn't be the same, even if Kuro's vision for the future came true.

 **To be continued...**


	21. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

The soft sounds of birds chirping brought Kuro out of a deep reverie.

He stood in a small house, gentle sunlight flowing through the windows, his bare feet making the slightest of creaks upon the light wooden floor. This house held only one room, and it was one he knew well. A single bed sat there, with pure white sheets made legendarily comfortable. Save for the pairs of flowing white curtains that fluttered in the breeze of the open windows and a simple, wooden door, the room was otherwise featureless.

A man laid in the bed, his own features very similar to Kuro's. He was lying on his stomach, the covers draped over his shoulders. Gray eyes, very similar to Ruby's, stared from behind a pair of black-framed glasses, while tangled locks of dark, blond hair danced atop his head. Two pale arms were folded before him, and he was looking up at Kuro, his own looks giving him the image of an eighteen year old, fresh with the vigor of youth.

Both men were wearing calm, peaceful expressions.

"We've succeeded." Kuro said, his voice soft and slow. "You've achieved what you set out to do." He curled his metallic wings around his shoulders.

There was a pause, and the man broke eye contact, shifting slightly. Then, he refocused on Kuro.

"Have I?" he asked.

Kuro's reaction was immediate. He knelt before the bed, so that they were only several feet apart.

"What do you mean?" Kuro asked. "The future has been altered. Team RWBY will continue their schooling, and Ruby and Weiss have fallen for each other via the Night Walker phenomenon. Was that not what you and I set out to do?"

"It was, and it has been done." the man replied, his expression a sad smile. "But the way we did it was too intrusive. Think about it." At Kuro's pause, he continued. "The phenomenon affected RWBY in the way we intended, but then we had to physically become involved in order to secure their bond in place. Now, we, or at least you, are integral to this world's future alongside RWBY. This was not what I, or THEY, wanted."

"If we had not been involved, the tragedy would have happened again." Kuro responded, reaching out and putting a hand on the other man's shoulder. "If Aki and Shio, under the disguises of Vade and Aya, had not made themselves more public, events would not have shifted towards our chosen destination. In order to force an intrusive change, you require an intrusive method."

"Perhaps." the man mused. "Nevertheless, you are correct. We have achieved what we set out to do. Now, together, we must mold this world back into the shape that I intended it to be." At Kuro's sudden look of incredulity, the man suppressed a smirk. "This world was never supposed to be so complex, you know."

"Was it not?" Kuro asked. Another pause.

"That question is dangerous, Kuro." the man softly chided, before slowly shaking Kuro's hand off. "We must stay the course. Watch over the world, and ensure that this world does not fall into the same trap that we just pulled it out of."

Kuro gave him a knowing look, before he turned away, standing up.

"I understand. I'll relay your instructions to Aki and Shio." Kuro stated, before starting to walk away. "I trust in you, my Master, not just as a master, but as a friend. Please remember."

"I will. Thank you, Kuro." the man replied behind him. He caught the last words before he exited the building.

"My avatar."

* * *

Now alone, the man in bed rolled over so that he faced the oak roof of the building, and sighed, resting an arm atop his forehead.

"What is truly perfect?" he asked himself. "Something for they, or something for me? Do I want to please them, or please myself?"

He paused, closing his eyes.

"No." he asserted. "They will not like what I've done. And why should they? It's not catered to their expectations. Let alone what they wanted."

The eyes flashed open, and a tear came from the corner of the left one.

"So what now?" he said. "They rarely care about the one beyond, how he feels. Just like the rest of them. So why do I actually care?"

Another tear fell.

"Maybe... it's just because of my own failings." the man answered. "I did lose faith in trust and friendships, have for quite a while. They will be the same. Claim to care, then the words just fall flat within seconds, painfully obvious to the one they claim to care about. It's ironic. The only friendships, the only love I feel and share, comes from my role in this world."

He rolled back over and propped himself up on his elbows.

"It's never enough, but it'll have to do for now." he said. "Once those men and women learn to... oh, who am I kidding?" He bowed his head.

"No-one will really care, will they?"

* * *

Kuro stepped through the ashen white door, into the dark realm of the Dark Library, still thinking about his Master's words.

 _"We must stay the course. Watch over the world, and ensure that this world does not fall into the same trap that we just pulled it out of."_

What trap was he referring to?

The room before him was the one where he had been rested. A single white bed, two white torches in brackets, and nothing else.

Aki and Shio sat cross-legged upon it, awaiting his return as per his instructions. Their twin faces lit up immediately upon seeing him.

"Master! Did everything go according to plan?" Aki asked excitedly.

"Was everything done?" Shio queried, more softly than her twin sister.

"Yes and no." Kuro replied, as he sat down on the bed, mirroring their poses. While Aki's face seemed to brighten, Shio's darkened.

"What does that mean?" Shio asked. Aki's face fell too upon hearing her sister's words.

"He's doing his work on this world." Kuro responded. "Soon, it'll be our time to act again. But for now, we must be patient. We did do as he requested."

"You make it sound as if the fault lies somewhere." Shio pressed, her expression unreadable, her glowing blue eyes seemingly dark.

"Not with us." Kuro quickly assured. He turned to glance at Aki, only to find that she wasn't there.

* * *

Aki materialized before the man in bed, bowing respectfully even as he rose from his position within the bed. The pristine sheets coiled around him like an icy mist, and he regarded her with a look of appraisal, his expression neutral.

"Creator, may I speak to you?" she asked, her tone formal, knowing full well the power of the man before her.

"You may." he responded in kind. "You do not need permission to speak to me, you know."

Aki paused, considering her words. Kuro had told her that this man held the power to shape this world into whatever he desired, dictated everything. While she found it hard to believe there was anything stronger that her master, it was hard to argue that Kuro's master was superior in terms of power.

"Master Kuro has told us that you're, well, worried." Aki said, taking a brave step closer. "I wanted to see if there was anything I could do to help."

The Creator did not reply for several moments. Then, he sighed, his eyes betraying a momentary weakness.

"Worry isn't the right word." he intoned. "Uncertain. Uncertain about whether or not events should have taken this course." Seeing her eyes, he smiled. "Don't hesitate to speak your mind."

"You've led us in the right direction, though." Aki assured, smiling at him. "You've got what you wanted."

"What _I_ wanted, yes, but in it comes two issues." he replied. "One is the fact that it is not what everyone wished for. You know who I refer to. The second is the way we achieved our goals, by tearing down the course of this world and replacing it with our own design. Even our very existence in this world. We are outsiders, and not many appreciate our existence. Collectively, you, I, Shio and Kuro hold the power to turn this world in whichever direction I desire. But, both points are irrelevant when compared to the question of my own satisfaction against everyone else's."

"What do you mean? If you control everything, shouldn't you do what you want?" Aki asked, her smile faltering. If what Kuro said was true and this was HIS world, surely it would be his to shape how he liked, for better or worse. At this, the Creator chuckled.

"People outside of my own circles rarely care for my vision." the Creator responded, a smile upon his face now. "I have seen many worlds like this one, some of which I had a hand in their creation. For those I was involved in, I kept silent. But, within this world, I have my chance to show those that watch my machinations what I face, how I feel, as a human as well. And yet I know that because of this lack of care, no-one would really give any to my plight. They prefer those stories where I am silent, where their satisfaction is guaranteed, and I weave my work in patterns pleasing to them. Even now, I wonder if anyone will really see my true feelings, or even care if they should be shown."

Aki was silent. In the face of this, she had no answer.

"There's a reason I am called the Dark Creator, you know. Within this world, I paint this picture to my own tastes, and convey what I wish to convey to others." the Creator continued, his grin turning sinister. "For those willing to understand. For those that actually care about the pen behind the ink."

"For those that actually give a damn."


End file.
